


Drawn Together

by badwolfhufflepuff



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn, artist!veneziano, slight homophobia, story in story, writer x artist, writer!germany
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 19:17:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 32,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18923374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/badwolfhufflepuff/pseuds/badwolfhufflepuff
Summary: The wheel of fortune never stops spinning.Who was on the top, now is on the bottom.And who was on the bottom, now is on the top.-Giovanni Gondola, OsmanFeliciano never expected his entire life to change after a single doodle, but there it was. And it was not just a beautiful dream.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My first fanfic :)  
> Criticism and feedback is always welcome.  
> I will probably update slowly tho...

_Venice, 2018_

"I have to buy more blue and green." Came from a young man watering his tulips on the windowsill. He brushed his light brown hair with his fingers away from his face, allowing it to bathe in the early morning sun rays. He wasn't normally the person who would wake up early in the morning, but duty calls and he had work to do.

His brothers had yet to wake up and, if we're being honest, he enjoyed the morning silence. It was always very noisy in the house. His younger brother Romeo had a habit of singing loudly and, sometimes, off key which pisses off his eldest brother Lovino. It was a good thing they lived a bit outside of Venice and not in the centre or else the neighbours would complain all the time.

And he, a stunning 22 year old man who answers to Feliciano, was always just there. He wasn't really all that flashy like his brothers. Sure, he had his talents, one being art which was also his job, but he was mostly known as the happy one from the Vargas family. Maybe that was for the best.

He just finished watering his tulips when he heard a loud thud followed by a bad word you probably shouldn't teach to your kids. Lovino was awake and if he wanted to live to finish his painting of the Adriatic Sea, he better make him some coffee.

He set down the watering pot and started the coffee machine. Knowing his brother, he has about 20 minutes till he gets ready enough to come down to the kitchen. Just enough time to make breakfast as well.

Feliciano opened the bottom drawer next to the washing machine to take some bread Romeo baked the night before as well as some jam and Nutella from the table next to the stove. He knew Lovino liked it when he made his special half jam half Nutella bread, even though the latter would never admit that.

Lovino was down right on time for breakfast and coffee which means Feliciano gets to live for one more day.

"Morning." Lovino greeted, his voice still sore from sleeping.

"Good morning, Lovi!" Feliciano returned and offered his brother two pieces of bread and his cup of coffee with some anime girls on it. "Are you driving Romeo to collage today?"

"No. Midget can walk to his collage. Maybe he gets some tan from the stupid sun blinding my eyes at 4 in the damn morning."

Despite being the shortest of the three, Lovino still had a bad habit of calling his brothers midgets. Talk about Napoleon complex.

"I was thinking we should all take a walk. It's a nice day and it's been too long since we took a walk together. Plus I need to buy more paint." Feliciano smiled as he made his own cup of coffee, with a picture of the Colosseum on it, and sat down beside his brother.

"When are you gonna get a real job? You can't just draw for a living. Get an actual job that pays well and you can do art in your spare time." Lovino looked at Feliciano, who has most certianly heard this all before.

"It's what I love, Lovi. It's what I want to do with my life. Believe it or not, money isn't everything in the world. I want to be happy with my life. I don't wanna waste it doing something I hate just because it pays well." Feliciano rolled his eyes.

"So you're planning on living off Grandpa's allowances, love and some drawings? That's more miserable than doing what you hate. I hate my job, do you see me miserable? No. Then why can't you do the same?"

"Because I'm not you and I don't wanna talk about this. It's my choice, Lovi. Not yours."

And with that the conversation died, the two brothers continuing their breakfast in awkward silence. Until...

There was a loud thumping and a red headed boy was before them in less than a minute. His messy hair falling on his face, the eyebags still visible. He was gasping for his breath.

"Why didn't anyone wake me up?!" He said in between smaller gasps.

"Romeo, you're 19. You're old enough to wake yourself up." Lovino said, not remotely fazed by his brother's state.

"Um, no. If you woke up before me, you should have woken me up. You know my phone alarm doesn't work. Or my phone at all."

"Fratellino, calm down. You're not in high school anymore, your collage doesn't start till 9. It's 6:40." Feliciano laughed. He had the same problem when he left high school too.

Romeo looked at the clock. It showed 6:40. His high school would start at 7 AM. His body still wasn't used to the new surrounding that was collage. He buried his head in his hands and sat down. "What's for breakfast?"

"My speciality." Feliciano offered him some Nutella-jam bread.

"I love it when you get up early."

"I know you do." Feliciano laughed and the breakfast was continued.

It was 8:00 when Romeo left the house for collage, leaving Lovino and Feliciano alone. Lovino was getting ready in his room while Feliciano wrote the list of things he needed to buy. They were running low on coffee and milk, but most importantly Feliciano wanted to buy a new brush. His old one had far too many stray hairs to be used for delicate painting. It's a shame, but he had it since he was little. Of course he needed a new one.

"Are you done?" Lovino asked, spraying himself with some 'manly' perfume that smelled like plastic strawberry.

"Yeah, I'm done. I just have to find my jacket." Feliciano said, throwing every single jacket they had hanging in the hallway on the floor. A strange method, but it worked because he found his dark green fall jacket and returned all the others back on the stall.

"Good. Let's go. I have to go to the town for some buissness so if we don't hurry bye bye vaporetto." Lovino cringed at the reaction his brother made. They lived close to Venice, but they still had to travel by a smaller ship called vaporetto to get to it. It was inconvenient, but it was good for the tourist season.

Feliciano practically skipped the whole way to the port. There was one vaporetto waiting for people to board. Lovino entered inside to ask when it will be leaving and to pay for their ticket. Feliciano waited outside for his brother and when he exited the room to tell Feliciano they will be leaving soon, Feliciano boarded the ship.

The ride to Venice would usually take them about 45 minutes to a full hour, depending on whether or not there were many tourist groups. Today there was only two of them. Germans. Feliciano had taken a course on German in middle school, but he had mostly forgotten it. He understood that they were talking about some kind of new book that was a hit among youth in Germany. A book about Venice itself. He wished he still knew how to speak German. He would have asked for a title.

They arrived on Riva degli Schiavoni, a bridge and a walk away from the magnificent Basilica di San Marco and it's large Piazza which was always crowded with either people or pigeons. Feliciano loved to run into pigeons, loving the way their wings moved as they flew away. He wanted to do that now, but apparently his brother wasn't planning on more walking and was talking, rather happily, to their old friend Antonio, who was a gondolier.

"Feli! I gotta go to post office, not pigeon chasing! Get your ass over here!" Lovino yelled, reverting back to his moody attitude. He jumped into the gondola and sat down, crossing his arms and legs.

"I'm coming, quit yelling! Hi Toni! I hope Lovi pays you for this." Feliciano greeted and jumped into the gondola and sat down next to his brother. He was looking foward to going under Ponte dei Sospiri. He was even preparing himself to breathe out while going under it.

"It's always free for you three. We're friends after all. Lovi can pay me with a little drink after I'm done with my shift." Antonio said as he adjusted his gondola and softly made his way to the post office near the Church of San Salvador.

Feliciano enjoyed everything he saw. He was born here, but in his entire lifetime he could never comprehend Venice's entire beauty. It was only when he saw a bookstore hidden well among tall buildings and restaurants, that he snapped himself out of the trance.

"Hey Toni, do you think you could bring me right here while we wait for Lovi to do his thing?" He asked, turning around to look at Antonio.

Antonio brushed his curly dark brown hair away from his green eyes and nodded at Feliciano. "Sure! Saw something pretty?"

"Yeah, a bookstore. It had a nice design and I wanted to check it out. Plus I need to buy more paint and bookstores tend to have good ones." He answered happily, oblivious to his brother rolling his eyes.

The ride to the post office was relatively short and quiet, with occasional comments from Feliciano and Antonio asking how their grandpa was doing. They dropped off Lovino and were on their way back to the bookstore Feliciano saw.

"You got a book in mind to buy?" Antonio asked.

"Maybe. I overheard some German tourist talking about this book about Venice or something. I thought I should check if they had it." Feliciano smiled softly at Antonio.

"I think I know what you're talking about. Armando recently bought this book called  _Silence in Venice,_ by a German author _._ I asked my German friend about it and he told me that it was all the rage in Germany now. Apparently, it's a love story about a boy who goes to war and leaves behind his childhood love. That's all I know, Andy didn't tell me much else to avoid spoilers as he says."

"A love story... I really like those. Thanks, Toni!"

Soon they arrived and Feliciano hugged Antonio as a thanks, promising he won't be long.

He entered the bookstore and was immediately striken by the smell of new books. That wonderful scent of paper that was about to be touched and read by many. It was so pleasant, he would have just kept standing there forever. But he had to move, Antonio was waiting for him outside and maybe even Lovino. Knowing his brother, if he waited longer than 10 minutes, he would lose his already short temper.

Feliciano quickly found the desired shades of blue and green as well as a new paintbrush that had small drawings on it. It was a bit more expensive than the normal brush, but it spoke to his soul so... how could he say no?

He was about to go pay for his things, when a book cover caught his eye. It had a picture of two people, a boy and a girl, on Ponte di Rialto, embracing each other like they were about to lose each other. The girl had long light brown hair tied in two side braids and was wearing a beautiful green dress. The boy had blonde hair that looked like it was previously slicked back, but messed up by the wind, and was wearing a war uniform. Feliciano knew which book it was. The title read  _Il Silenzio a Venezia. Silence in Venice._  The book Antonio recommended to him.

Feliciano couldn't resist it. He bought it and happily skipped to the gondola on which Antonio waited for him. He clutched the book in his arms close to his chest, impatiently waiting to read it.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm a bit late with this one, but I managed yayy. Next chapter should be up soon hopefully because it's summer and my exams are finally over so look foward to it.

_'A maid was her official title, but she looked more like a slave dressed in that dirty green dress barely reaching her knees. Otto found out pretty recently that her name was Alice and that she was from a once noble Venetian family. According to the head maid, her family lost its wealth when her grandfather had fallen horribly ill, thus resulting in massive debt they had to pay to the doctors. It was all, of course, in vain and her grandfather passed away a few months later._

_To return the debt, her parents sent her and her older brother to serve two families while they worked day and night. Neither of the two actually got to say goodbye to their grandfather which made Alice depressed. She did put on a polite smile when she had to and Otto thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world._

_They were around the same age, but he saw himself as an older brother figure, though it was obvious he wanted to be more than that. The problem being that he wasn't supposed to have these feelings for her. She lost her nobility status and his parents would kill him if he told them he wanted to marry her. After all, it wasn't appropriate for a prince to marry a slave_.'

Feliciano flipped the page. He and Lovino were on the way back home and he decided it was a good time to start reading, just to kill some time. Feliciano wouldn't call himself a fast reader, he had only made it to page 20 after all, but he wasn't very slow. Lovino, who decided to peak a little at what his brother was reading, was a fast reader and would mumble angrily at Feliciano to flip the page already.

"I can lend it to you after I'm done if you want to read it. You go way too fast for me." Feliciano said.

"Not all that interested, just passing the time like you after all. Romantic novels are boring."

"No, they aren't..." Feliciano mumbled and went back to his reading. Not for long, however. They arrived at the port soon enough and Feliciano couldn't help the disappointed sigh. 

"Who even wrote that book anyways?" Lovino asked once they were on the way home.

"Well, I overheard a few German tourists talking about it on the way to the town. Hold on..." Feliciano picked up the book from his bag of art supplies and allowed his fingers to grace the authors name. "Ludwig Beilschmidt."

"A German, of course. You should burn that book, Feli. I don't want you to start acting like them. So loud."

"No, I like the book so far. Besides, nothing stereotypically German happened in it yet so... Why does it matter if he's German anyway?"

"You know how I feel about Germans. They act like they are the rulers of Europe, the highest of class. You know, like those aristocrats from fairytales? That's them. And then they come here and start behaving like little kids let loose. You can't even visit Rome anymore because they blocked all the entrances and exits. And all roads lead to Rome! They are brats, Feli!"

Feliciano rolled his eyes. This was typical Lovino. Sometimes he wondered if there was anyone besides Italians that Lovino liked. He did like only one (1) Spaniard and that was Antonio. Romeo was mostly indifferent to everyone, but he never spoke badly of anyone's country. Feliciano had a slightly different perspective. He believed that a country's worth is shown through their culture. In his brother's words it meant he didn't hate anyone.

He let his fingers grace the name of the author once again. Ludwig. Means warrior.

"Who are you talking about?" Lovino asked and Feliciano realised he might have said that aloud.

"Just the meaning of his name. Ludwig means warrior. I guess that means he's very brave. Or maybe he has slain a huge dragon terrorising the town." Feliciano laughed.

"That would mean people would drink me then. Since I'm 'the wine.' I swear mom and dad were probably drunk when they decided I had to be made so they named me after their mistake."

"Why was I named Feliciano?"

Lovino paused. "I don't really know. I guess after someone from the family. I was barely 2 when you were born, I don't remember that much."

"Alright. I'll ask Nonno next time he visits." Feliciano shrugged and put the book back into the bag. They would be home soon anyway.

_'"Alice! Come play with us!" A little girl yelled outside for the new girl who was in the middle of dusting an old shelf in the living room. She knew she wasn't supposed to leave yet, but the chance for a break was tempting. And she decided to take it. But not before she bumped into the prince's cousin, Rod._

_"And where do you think you're going, missy? Have you finished your duties because I can still see the dust on that shelf? Lazy little maid! You will go without a supper tonight!" Rod yelled at the poor girl who, because of her luck, hadn't eaten in almost 3 days._

_"What is all this noise? I'm trying to do my homework." And the prince appeared, Heaven or Hell sent, Alice couldn't tell._

_It took Otto a minute to process what was happening here. Alice, his beautiful Alice, was on the floor sobbing and his cousin had a look he had when he won a horse race with Otto's brothers. "Lady, what is my cousin doing to you?"_

_Alice wiped her tears away, but her voice continued to break before the prince. "He said I'd go without supper tonight and I haven't eaten in 3 days. I just wanted to take a break from work because I've been so tired without food."_

_Otto was disappointed. And he made sure his cousin knew. Forget about Alice being the love of his life, he was disappointed at Rod for treating anyone like that. Oh, how he wanted to make Rod cook her and everyone in the castle a nice meal to apologize. But he couldn't. He couldn't abuse his position like that or his parents will find out his secret._

_"You'll have your supper tonight and you may take a break now. However, as a maid it's your duty to finish your tasks when you've been given them. You may take breaks once you're done." Otto said, offering Alice a hand to get up which she gladly took and resisted the urge to hug him and hide from his cousin. Her clothes were dirty after all._

_"Thank you! My name is Alice, by the way. I'm Italian so it's pronounced with a ch." She smiled and Otto felt his knees would give out sooner or later. But they mustn't. Rod was still watching. Furiously._

_"You may call me Prince Otto and you may leave for your break now. Try not to cause too much noise near my study room again. That goes for you too, Rod." He gave his cousin an angry look once again and watched Alice let go of his hand and run towards the exit. Afterwards, he returned to his studies, blushing a sweet rose pink.'_

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a bit shorter than I wanted it to be, but I hit a bit of a writer's block. Hopefully it'll go away soon. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

"These two are so sweet, I love them." Feliciano said, eating his plate of gnocchi he made for lunch.

Lovino looked up from his phone and stared at his brother. "What are they doing?"

"Otto just saved her from his cousin and he's going on and on about how beautiful she is. He's so in love with her and she has no clue and it's adorable. They are adorable." Feliciano said, his own eyes filled with pure happiness for the two book characters. Like he was experiencing it himself.

"That's a bit unrealistic, don't you think? Aren't they 12 or something? Kids their age don't feel that strongly about one another. This German-"

"Ludwig."

"Whatever, he's German. Anyway, he clearly has no idea how any of that works so why are you bothering with it?"

"I think it's a good story. I'm only at the beginning and beginnings are always cringy."

"Not always."

"Harry Potter doesn't count. And neither does Percy Jackson."

"Unless it's a movie."

"Percy Jackson movies were never made. We established that rule long ago. Anyway, you're not giving it a chance. Tell you what, in a few more pages it's gonna blow your mind."

"Just you dream, Feli. I'm not reading that. Germans are boring and emotionless writers."

Feliciano finished his plate and got up to put it in the sink. He would wash the dishes later. Maybe. "How would you know? You only ever read Goethe."

"Correction: I didn't. He was too boring to even look at."

"Then you've got no right to talk." And with that Feliciano went upstairs to his room.

_'Alice slowly opened the door to the prince's room. She didn't know if she should be in it or not, but she needed to thank him for saving her the day before. She had finally eaten something in a while and never felt as full of energy as she did now. All thanks to the boy sleeping soundly in front of her._

_She has heard many stories about the German prince, one being that he was to be the next emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Alice however, wasn't really interested in the whole emperor thing, especially now as she watched him sleep, clenching a small daisy and a bracelet in her hands, gifts she had prepared for him._

_She reached for the nighttable to place them there, but Otto picked that moment to turn around, startling her a bit and causing her to let out a little squeal. Having heard her, Otto woke up and blinked at her._

_"Ah...um... Good morning, Prince Otto. I was... I know I shouldn't be here, but I was just leaving. I'm very sorry for waking you up." She managed to let out through stutters._

_"Alice?", Otto slowly rised from the bed and sat up at the edge, motioning for the little girl to sit next to him, "What were you doing here in the first place?"_

_Alice took the offer and sat on the bed next to the prince, careful not to dirty it up with her dress. She looked down in embarrassment of being caught in the act, hopefully Otto will understand her reason. "Well I wanted to thank you for being so nice to me yesterday so I brought some gifts. They aren't much, however."_

_She pointed to the nighttable and waited for Otto's reaction, half expecting him to throw them out of the window because such simple gifts were not fit for the prince._

_To her surprise, Otto picked the bracelet up and placed it on his hand and Alice's own hands moved on their own to help him with it. It was a perfect fit and Alice felt a sense of pride that she was able to make it so perfectly. Maybe she should make him more._

_"It fits so perfectly I don't think I'll be taking it off anytime soon. I appreciate the gesture, Alice." Otto smiled as he picked up the daisy._

_"It's nothing, really. It's just a thank you gift. I can make many more if you want."_

_"In that case you would need more material. I suggest you ask Betty to accuire some for you. I will take responsibility of payment."_

_"I can't do that. I can't ask that much. I'm just a low maid now, you shouldn't be wasting money on me."_

_This seemed to hurt Otto. How could she think like that? How could she lower herself like that? She may not be the most important person in the world, but she was everything in his world._

_"Alice, I choose to spend money on things I see potential in. You have a great talent with these and it should not go to waste. I will simply not allow it." He said, his voice serious. And he was on this matter. "Also, you should not lower yourself so much and think you're not worth a couple of coins. You're a friend of mine and your worth transcends any amount of money in the world."_

_Alice blushed at that statement, her chest suddenly heavy with new emotions. She knows what it is now. Ever since she arrived here, everytime she saw the prince, she felt it. She has fallen in love.'_

Feliciano smiled to himself. As cringey as it sounded, Feliciano enjoyed it. He had his fair share of childhood romances, he knew they could be as overreactive as Ludwig made them be. You love someone so much and you think they are perfect for you even when you don't know if the feeling is mutual, and then you grow up and realize they weren't as perfect as you made them be.

"People cringe just at the mention of their childhood love. Or anything they loved back then. But why? Why can't they be happy with that sweet feeling of childhood innocence, when they loved no matter who or what?" He said quietly to himself.

Feliciano picked the bookmark from the nighttable and placed it in a book before holding it tightly to himself, looking at the ceiling. He still had some glowing stars placed on it from the time he was young, even though they lost their glow. He didn't feel like taking them off as they held a lot of memories. They protected him on stormy nights.

Feliciano's room was actually an attic. It was by his own choice that he got it as a room since it had the best view on the Adriatic sea in the whole house. He spent most of his childhood in it anyway, playing and painting, so when his parents decided to make it into his room, he was overjoyed. He didn't have a specific theme set for his room so in it's early days it looked like a mix of starry sky, dinosaurs, ocean and flowers. It didn't change much from that. Feliciano didn't want it to change.

"I guess I can take a break and paint something. This book is giving me so much inspiration." He said to himself and got up from the bed.

His painting stool was facing the window and an unfinished painting of the Adriatic sea was sitting on it, waiting. Feliciano finally bought the colours he needed to finish the painting. He picked them out of the bag and opened them, allowing himself to be absorbed by the smell of new paint. Which is hopefully not toxic to him at this point in life. Setting them near his stool, he began his work.

Looking at Feliciano painting, one would often call him calm. Sitting there in a relaxed posture, his hand gracefully flowing through the air between canvas and paint and each stroke he makes is done so delicately, it's like watching ASMR videos on Youtube endlessly. However, Feliciano was anything but calm. He was filled with so many emotions. Mostly positive as he wanted his painting to radiate with joy rather than sadness. He didn't have anything against sadness in art, but he figured he liked people smiling more than them feeling melancholic.

The sea was calm today. For the past few days it had been turbulent and the news reported possible aqua alta, but it seemed to cool its emotions today. Feliciano was grateful for that. He always thought the sea was reacting that way because people are hurting it too much. He treated the turbulence as a cry for help and when it rised during aqua alta, he saw it as a warning, like a mother scolding her child. During the calm, however, Feliciano thought of happiness. As if the sea was a beautiful woman who accomplished her goals in life and was radiating energy and wisdom. During the calm, it reminded him of his grandmother, who passed away when Feliciano was 5. He thought part of her soul stayed on to watch over him and his brothers through the sea.

That was the feeling Feliciano wanted to capture. The happiness of a child loved by those who live and who passed away. It was the meaning of life for him. He hoped that meaning will continue living on even when he was gone. Through his family, friends, art he made, and people whose soul he managed to touch through them. All until time stopped.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and criticism are always welcome <3


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me? Still alive and writing on occasion? Unbelievable. 
> 
> But yeah, here I am, uploading Chapter 4 on Halloween as my spooky present for anyone interested. You probably won't get scared, but just in case.....
> 
> BOO!

He messed up.

Well, not too horribly but enough to make him give up and regret even trying.

Feliciano flopped back on his bed and turned his attention to the ceiling, hoping to forget his mistake. The canvas was still standing there at the very centre of his room. This time an ugly brownish blue running horizontally across it. Feliciano accidentally dipped his new paintbrush into a can containing brown instead of deep blue and realized too late.

He could fix this. He could turn the brown into a large branch, maybe even a boat. Or Loch Ness monster. He could tell everyone he was painting the lake when Nessie appeared before him, curious to see what exactly this man was up to. No one would believe him, naturally, but he could at least entertain the children. Right now, however, painting some more was the last thing he wanted to do.

Feliciano looked at the book sitting peacefully on his nighttable, a lovely bookmark he made sticking slightly out of it, waiting for Feliciano to pull it out and continue reading. Normally, he would be too lazy to finish it, but not today. Not with this book. He was drawn to it. And he obeyed it's wishes.

_'The green dress she was wearing started getting teared._

_Of course, Otto was the first to notice, likely after her. The question as to why she hadn't changed into a new one was quite obvious to him. She didn't have any other dresses. Elizabeta once told him that she had almost zero belongings when she arrived, only the green dress she wore and a small box. Back when she told him, he didn't have much time to spare, but now he made his decision final._

_They needed to go shopping for new dresses._

_"Alice! Come quickly!" He called for her as she was cleaning the hallway to the kitchen._

_"Yes, Prince Otto? Do you need anything?" She asked cheerfully, earning a bit of a blush from the young prince._

_"Yes, as a matter of fact I need you," Otto's brain added_ forever  _to this, but he didn't voice it out. It would seem a bit creepy. "I would like for you to accompany me to the town square today. There's some buisness I need to attend to. You don't have to worry about cleaning, Rod won't be in the castle today." He continued._

_"Yes! I shall go with you right away, My Prince!" She nodded and excused herself to place her push broom back into the supply closet._

_Otto, on the other hand, ran to his room as quickly as possible under the excuse of getting ready. He did not expect that from Alice. He did not expect her to call him her prince at all. Just those two words were enough for his heart to try it's best to leave his body. Just two words were enough for him to question if she might return his feelings. If that was the case, he would be the happiest person to walk this Earth._

_His wave of thoughts was interrupted by knocking. Was Alice ready already?_

_"Come in." He said._

_He was met with disappointment for before him was not his beloved Alice, but his mother, the Queen. He bowed like he had been thaught to do, although he would much rather be hugging a certian red headed girl._

_"I hear you're going to the town square. With who and for what purpose?" The Queen asked, her voice clearly echoing against the walls of his bedroom._

_"I've selected a maid to accompany me. There's something I would like to buy to help me with my studies. If I may, Mother?" He flinched at his own formality. He could barely hide the angry sound of his voice as he called Alice a maid. It wasn't an appropriate word for someone he would make the stars rain for._

_"Very well then, you may go. On the condition head maid accompanies you as well. I don't want you getting lost with some random maid." Spinning on her heel, she exited his room._

_Otto appreciated his mother's concern. He appreciated the fact she even showed up in his room and had a five minute conversation with him. He loved his mother despite her never actually being around him or his brothers. But in this moment, as her footsteps echoed across the hall, making her way away from his room, he wanted nothing more than to yell at her. He wanted to scream his feelings out. Everything. From Alice, to being a prince, to the empire, to her absence. He wanted to scream it all out at her. But he didn't._

_He had to take the head maid as well. Luckily for him, the head maid happened to be Elizabeta. A woman who he had every right to call 'mother' as she had been in his life longer than his own. He had a feeling she knew. He asked her about Alice too many times to count. He could trust her. Right?_

_Otto wasn't sure what to make of it. And he hadn't really had the opportunity to do so for a rugged dirty green dress was standing at the doorway and the wearer smiled widely at him. He gulped and nearly fainted, but returned the smile nevertheless._

_"I see you're ready. I just have to collect some money. Can you please go find Betty? Mother made it clear to me we have to take her as well." He managed to babble out some sentances before turning away to blush madly._

_Alice only nodded, putting a finger to her lips to keep the giggle from leaving her mouth. His blushing face and reactions made her day like nothing else. He was cute. And she was crushing hard._

_"Right away, My Prince." This time she did giggle. Leaving the doorway quickly to find Betty, a soft pink adorned her cheeks. She was hoping Otto didn't know how much he made her weak in her knees. She hoped that, at the same time, he returned and didn't return her feelings. If he were to return them, that meant separation from each other was unavoidable._

_Alice wished for them to stay close forever. Unaware of each other's feelings.'_

Feliciano sighed. Hoping that what he was predicting to happen would turn out not to be the case, he flipped the page.

_Before they knew it, they were in the carriage making their way to the town. It was a small carriage so while Otto could sit rather comfortably, Elizabeta and Alice sat squished together like sardines in a can. Watching them like that made Otto feel guilty, but he didn't want to raise any questions by offering Alice to sit next to him. Just in case Elizabeta didn't know._

_"Prince Otto?" Elizabeta broke the silence._

_Otto's eyes shot up straight at her. If she saw right through him-_

_"May I sit outside? I don't feel very good in small spaces." She continued, breaking his train of thought._

_"Ah... Yes, you may. Alonso, stop the carriage!" He turned in direction of the driver, where a small window sat behind an equally small curtain. Alonso obeyed his orders and Elizabeta exited, winking at Otto in the process. That wink was enough for Otto to confirm everything._

_As soon as Elizabeta left, Alice breathed out and made herself comfortable, smiling at the prince. He was trying so hard not to stare at her rose lips as they spread across her face, but he failed miserably at it._

_"This is my first time leaving the castle grounds since I came here. It's so lovely and green." She started the conversation._

_"Really? You haven't been to the town since you arrived? But that was months ago." Otto acted surprised. He knew the exact date Alice arrived at the castle. He also knew every single one of the reasons why she never had time for visiting the town. That's precisely why he invited her._

_"Yes. That was nearly a year ago. In a year I couldn't find time to spare to go. I'm really grateful to you for inviting me, Prince Otto." There was that smile again. Otto would travel across the entire world just to see that smile forever._

_"If you want to, you can accompany me on these trips every time. It's nice to have a company on these fine days." He returned the smile._

_"Really?! You'd take me?!" She almost jumped from overexcitement. To think she could get to see this wonderful view whenever Otto goes to the town was magical to her._

_Otto, as it's his nature, blushed as red as the interior of his carriage. The royal color adorning his face perfectly. "Yes. If you really want to go. However, I'd like for you to do something for me in return."_

_"Anything, My Prince." Those two words again. Otto hoped to not get any redder than he already was._

_"I'd like for you to tell me more about Venice."_

_The silence filled the carriage like air. Alice's smile slowly disappeared as her eyes lowered to stare at her feet. Watching her like that, Otto regretted asking this question. "Hey-"_

_"It's breathtaking. My Venice." She interrupted. Her honey brown eyes turning back to stare at his sea blue ones, radiating honesty and nostalgia. "There's a strict but kind air to it. We have a large navy and we're really good at trading and visitors offten fear us. When they see us, they picture mean people who are only after money and nothing else. But then they get to know us. Then they find out that we can easily befriend everyone, no matter how poor or how rich they are. They are all welcome in Venice."_

_She smiled fondly and continued: "People are always smiling and laughing. And family is number one to them. Like it should be. But it's not just their own family that's important to them, it's everyone's family. I remember one time when me and my brother were playing and I fell into the chanal. Neither of us knew how to swim yet so he couldn't get me out. Then an older lady showed up right next to me and carried me out of the water. She drained my as dry as she could and comforted us until we stopped crying. She even gave us some of her sweet bread and took us home. I can never forget her face."_

_Otto stared at Alice with pure anticipation. He knew she loved her hometown, but hearing her talk about it, he realized just how passionate she was about it._

_She continued to talk about it all the way to the town square. Otto only made a few passing comments and continued listening, the two growing closer with every word Alice uttered. However, their small conversation was interrupted by the carriage coming to a stop._

_Elizabeta opened the door for them, stepping aside. Otto exited first, but turned back to the door and offered his hand. Alice politely accepted it and, as soon as she was out, her mouth fell open._

_The town square resembling her home Venice almost to a point. Naturally, it wasn't the same town, this one being smaller with different achitecture. No, they were two different towns, but the life on the streets, the atmosphere, the small chats, they all reminded Alice of her home._

_Otto stared at her, waiting for a reaction of sorts. One that wasn't her mouth almost touching the floor. That's when he noticed Alice's eyes were slowly filling with tears. In a split second, his own expression changed from a soft smile to a disappointing frown._

_"Are you alright?" He asked as softly as he could._

_Alice smiled and nodded. "I'm alright. It just reminds me of home so much. It's beautiful."_

_Otto sighed in relief. "Come now. We'll take a tour across the town later. First we need to go to Madame Belez's shop."_

_Tearing her eyes from the baker and butcher, who were having a sort of conversation while secretly brushing their fingers together as they walked, Alice went with Otto and Elizabeta to a small street._

_Some time passed before they made it to Madame Belez's shop. Like any shop it was hidden amongst the buildings with the only indication of it's location being a small wooden sign above the doorframe. The sign itself wasn't very decorated, but the inside screamed early baroque.'_

Feliciano paused and laughed. He took Art History back in High School and he knew that, if his teacher had read that, she would flip the tables and burn the book. Nevertheless, he continued.

_'"Good day, Madame Belez." Elizabeta opened the door for the prince and greeted._

_"Good day to you, Your Highness. What brings you here today?" A middle aged, short woman asked. Brushing away her blonde hair from her face, she stepped foward to greet Otto._

_"I have a request for you. I'd like you to sew my friend here-", Otto pointed to Alice, "a new dress. As you can see, her's is getting more and more ragged every day."_

_Alice looked at Otto in disbelief. A new dress? For her? She can't even pay for it._

_"Prince Otto, I can't afford a new dress." She spoke._

_Otto turned to her with a smile. "I'll be paying for it."_

_Now, Alice was purely shocked. A prince paying for maid's clothes? Where in the world was that a normal thing?_

_"No, Prince. I can't let you do that. That's too much. I'm already more than grateful to have food to survive and a shelter from rain. I can't ask for luxuries like this." Alice said, determination filling the air as she spoke it out._

_"Alice, consider this a present. You've been with us for nearly a year, we should celebrate that. Besides, as I said before, you're my friend. I'm more than obliged to buy my friends something nice once in a while." Otto's own determination rivaled that of Alice's._

_"Prince-"_

_"Let me do this, Alice." Although his stance showed no signs of  submission, his eyes were begging for Alice to accept._

_He took her hands into his own to assure her she had nothing to worry about, assure her money wasn't a problem. "Let me buy you a nice dress. You deserve it." He said._

_All it took for Alice was one look. One look into his deep blue eyes, asking for her permission. She wanted to keep saying no, but she couldn't find it in her after looking into Otto's blue eyes. They were swallowing her up like a beast. There was a shark in them and it was devouring her in those few moments of silence. "If you promise me not to do this again. At least not without asking me first. I quite like this dress, you know." She accepted._

_Elizabeta, meanwhile, was attempting to hide her chuckles at how obvious these two were, but she shouldn't comment anything if she wanted to keep her position and head._

_Madame Belez, on the other hand, was utterly terrified. Not for her own life, but for Alice and Otto. She knew it well how the queen would disapprove. She knew well what happens when someone disobeys her wishes. She knew it all thanks to her dead husband. Nevertheless, Madame Belez put on a polite smile, hoping the best for these two oblivious lovebirds._

_"Shall I take your measurements, darling?" She asked and Alice nodded, letting go of Otto's hands despite her heart protesting._

_Madame Belez motioned towards a doorframe with pink curtain draped over to symbolise a door. She moved it to the side and let Alice go in first, leaving Otto and Elizabeta waiting._

_"Your Highness?" Elizabeta started._

_"What is it, Betty?" He asked._

_"It's not really my buisness to poke into, but the way you're treating Alice is quite...specific." She explained, a small grin forming on her face. She couldn't resist asking in the end._

_"It is what you're thinking of, however I ask you not to talk about it. Especially in front of Alice and my mother. I will tell Alice myself, but who knows what my mother might do. And please stop smirking." He blushed, his eyes firm on the pink curtain door, hoping Alice couldn't hear them._

_"Your secret is safe with me. You have good taste, might I add."_

_"Thank you, Betty. Also, promise to tell me when my behaviour becomes too obvious. So I know to supress it."_

_"In my opinion, love shouldn't be supressed. That just makes it painful when it should be happy. You love a person because you love their happiness, even when love isn't returned." Elizabeta said, even when she knew she shouldn't voice out her opinions. It wasn't ladylike._

_"You've always been different, Betty. Don't ever change. Thank you for the advice." He said and smiled at her. This was a woman who raised him. No one's opinion mattered more to him than her's. And Alice's._

_Speaking of Alice, it was right around the time their conversation ended that she stepped out with Madame Belez. Otto had expected a happier reaction, but instead he was met with a frown on Alice's face and a serious expression on Madame Belez's face._

_"We have a few dresses ready for her already. Would you like to see them?" Madame Belez asked._

_"That was quick. Yes, let's see them." Otto commented._

_"Yes, she's the typical young lady size and I always have a few extras just in case. I shall bring them right away." And she left the room once again, this time going to the top floor._

_"Are you alright?" Otto asked as Alice got near his side._

_Alice looked up from the floor into his blue eyes once again. This time they weren't swallowing her up, but gently grazing her like a loving mother. This time they were breaking her. "Yes, I just got reminded of my family. I'm alright now."_

_Otto broke their gazing contest to look at Elizabeta, wondering if it was appropriate to comfort her. Elizabeta looked up at where Madame Belez exited and, once convinced she wasn't coming back, nodded at Otto._

_Elizabeta's approval led to a shocked look in Alice's hazel eyes. Otto's arms wrapped around her like a tight blanket, her head could fit in his neck like a glass of wine in a hand, their hearts beating closely together like drums calling for war._

_"I know you must miss them a lot, so I'll let you in on a secret. There's a ball coming up and I invited the family your brother was staying with. That's also why we're here. You need to pick out a ball dress." Otto whispered loud enough for Alice to hear, but not loud enough for Elizabeta._

_Alice couldn't hold it in herself anymore. Tears that hadn't come out in a while began to spill down her cheeks, marking Otto's shoulder. She wasn't even upset because of her family, but because of something Madame Belez said about Otto. Now, however, she was truly crying for her family. Mostly because she could finally see her brother after too long. "Tha...than...thank you...u..." was all she could mutter out._

_"I'd do anything for you, Alice." And he meant it. Every word of it._

_They broke their hug in the right moment because Madame Belez returned, holding about five dresses in her arms. Two beautiful baby blue gowns, two green summer dresses and a golden one decorated with pink flowers._

_They ended up leaving with all five of them. But most importantly, they ended up leaving even happier than before. That was all that mattered anyway.'_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone is still alive after reading this, I have news.
> 
> Considering I FINALLY figured out how to deal with the italic text, I will be making some changes in previous chapters regarding it. This might slow down the update process, which will be a lot quicker for at least the next 3 chapters, so once again, patience is all I ask for (although I don't doubt anyone who managed to wait this long just for this chapter).
> 
> But I also have some non-patience related news and that is my series is currently in process of final editing so expect a whole lot of me in Hetalia tag.
> 
> That's all for now. Byee!


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I'm back with another chapter! Hope you like it <3

_'Tonight was the night. Tonight she will see him. Her dear brother._

_Excitement filled her up to the brim. She could barely keep herself seated calmly as Elizabeta braided her hair. Alice sat on a small stool, wearing the golden dress Otto bought her. In her lap sat flowers, from daisies to roses to lillies. If she had to admit, they went really well with the dress._

_"Okay, now another daisy." Elizabeta asked and, like a cannon, Alice shot up her hand to give it to her._

_Elizabeta giggled as she took the flower and placed it in one of the braids going around Alice's head, resembling a flower crown. She left out a chunk of hair hanging to look natural and childlike._

_"Betty, do you think Romano will recognize me?" Alice asked, twinkling with joy._

_Elizabeta smiled. "Not with how pretty you've got. And that golden dress matches your eyes so well, I doubt even Otto would recognize you."_

_At the mention of prince's name, Alice's smile turned into a frown, dimples that were there moments ago, disappeared like they never existed._

_"Do you think... Do you think he'll stop liking me?" She asked, hiding her face from Elizabeta. She didn't want her to see the pitiful expression she was making._

_"He-" Elizabeta paused, realizing that Alice might not be asking this out of fear of him not liking her, but rather the opposite. "I don't think he will. You're his first real friend. Or rather, you're his first and only friend who's the same age as him. I don't think he'll let you go just like that."_

_"I wish that was the case. He's only going to get hurt if he keeps doing things like this to me." Alice pointed to the golden dress she was wearing, both the flowers engraved on the dress as well as those in her lap turned dull._

_Elizabeta sighed. This was unfair. This is unfair to everyone, but mostly to the child sitting in front of her. After all, that's exactly what Alice was. A child. A child who should be playing with kids and not working to pay a debt for her parents. A child who should be free to like and befriend whoever she chooses, not worrying about statuses. A child who should not be treated like she's an adult. A child whose childhood shouldn't be taken away like this._

_Elizabeta stepped away from Alice's hair and walked in front of her. Alice looked up at her as Elizabeta kneeled and hugged her. Shocked by this small motherly act, Alice broke down crying and returned the hug. Elizabeta smiled. "This isn't your battle, yet they are making a warrior out of you. Disobey them, Alice. You have it in you. You don't have to keep playing their game of house. Play with Otto, be friends with him, fall in love with him one day if you want, just don't let them stop you from being happy. Promise me you won't let them get in your way."_

_Alice continued to cry, nodding wholeheartedly. She needed this hug. She needed to feel this motherly energy around her, with her own being too far away. Elizabeta's words, however, engraved themselves into her memory. She might not be ready to fully accept them now, but when her time comes, she'll listen. "I pro... I promise.. e..." She said.'_

Feliciano paused his reading to wipe away the tears welling up in his eyes.

"That's right, these two are forbidden lovers, I knew that. I knew and yet I'm crying like a baby." He laughed at himself. "Whatever, I've always been a crybaby. Just stop watering, eyes. I need to continue. We'll cry lots later."

Unfortunately, his cheer up method didn't seem to work.

He got up and walked downstairs, curious to see what his brothers were up to. Romeo should be back from college by now. Feliciano could vent out his feelings about the book to his baby brother. He'll at least understand him, unlike Lovino.

That's not meant to imply Lovino is a bad brother. It's just that they have different points of view on the world. They can never understand each other. Lovino is more objective and Feliciano more subjective. Romeo balances them both out.

His train of thoughts was interrupted by something heavy hitting the floor, shaking their house a tiny bit. Logically, this could be either a school bag or a person, likely Romeo, however Feliciano's brain is anything but logical. It immediately turned on a there's-an-intruder-in-the-house mode and Feliciano's entire body froze before he dropped on the stairs in a ball position and cuddled up to the wall, hands covering his head. It wasn't until he heard a familiar groan that he snapped out of it.

Turns out that the logical option was, logically, correct because once he got himself down to the living room, he was met with a school bag on the floor and Romeo sprawled out like an octopus on the couch, typing on his phone like a madman. Upon noticing Feliciano, Romeo smiled and waved.

"I take that as a don't-ask-me-about-college." Feliciano said as he made his way down the stairs and sat on the sofa next to the couch. He pulled his legs up and made himself comfortable in the upside down position. The mute television that was on was showing some movie, neither cared at all about.

"Well, yes and no. I made a new friend today. She's a mathematician." Romeo smiled, not removing his eyes from his phone.

"What's her name? Are you texting her right now? Tell her I said hi." Feliciano asked. It wasn't unusual for Romeo to befriend girls. He was a really approachable kid and made friends easily, unlike Lovino who had trouble approaching people. Feliciano believed Lovino was socially anxious, but Lovino denied it. He thought it would make him look weak, no matter how much Feliciano tried to convince him otherwise. As for Feliciano himself, his friends were his brother's friends. Especially now that his own best friend Feliks left for UK for work.

"Anne Marie. She's a real cutie. Look." Romeo said and handed Feliciano his phone which was opened to a Whatsapp profile picture of a serious blonde girl. Her hair was tied in a side braid, few strands falling out of it gracefully. She appeared to be sitting in some sort of cafe, looking in the distance. She was trully cute.

"Good job befriending her. She looks like a friend material." Feliciano said as he handed Romeo his phone back.

"I know. I met her in the library while I was whining about not knowing math and she called me an idiot and then showed me how to solve the problem. We're off to a great friendship."

"You're incredibly weird, Romeo. Never change."

"So, what have you two been up to while I was gone suffering?"

"Oh, I bought this amazing book and Lovi's the usual."

"Book?"

"Yeah.  _Silence in Venice_  by a German author. I'm only around halfway through, but it's amazing."

"You and your Germans. You've always been in love with them." Romeo giggled and turned off his phone, facing Feliciano. "What's it about?"

"It's about these two people who meet and fall in love, but one is a prince and the other is his maid and everyone's been telling them they shouldn't be together except for this one lady who's a total badass." Feliciano babbled out as much as he could im one sentance.

Romeo stared at his brother, his expression a mixture of confusion and intrigue. "So, like, your type of books? Did you cry yet?"

"Only once and yesIloveittoomuch!"

"What?"

"I. Love. It. Too. Much."

"Oh. You talk too fast, Feli."

"We're Italian, Romeo."

"Yeah, yeah. It's still too fast."

A pause. Feliciano was trying his best to roll his eyes, but all he managed was to close them and Romeo stared at him, trying not to burst out laughing. After a short while, Feliciano decided it wasn't worth it.

"Anyway, I just came to see what you were up to. I'm gonna go continue it now." Feliciano got up and went back to his room, grabbing a Corny snack that was sitting on the table.

"Have fun and you're welcome for the Corny!" Romeo yelled out as Feliciano was climbing the stairs.

He flopped on his bed as soon as he saw it, book slightly jumping. Feliciano stared at it.

"I like how you write, Ludwig Beilschmidt." He said, picking up the book and continuing where he left off.

' _Such a moving moment was interrupted by the prince himself. Otto walked into the room dressed in one of his finest clothes, black and red pants, tight red shirt completed with a black cape. Said cape seemingly annoying him as he kept showing it off his arms. He walked in the room with a smile, but the look on his beloved's face changed his expression._

_"Alice..." he whispered softly._

_As soon as she noticed Otto, Alice wiped away her tears and smiled politely, bowing her head. Elizabeta turned around to look at the prince as well, admitting he looked handsome, she nodded and stepped away from Alice._

_Otto walked closer to the two ladies. "Is everything alright? Do you not like the dress?" He asked Alice, worried expression painted on his face._

_"No, I... I quite like it. I just miss my family a lot. Yeah, that's all." She answered. It was a partly true answer, she did miss her family, but the person she missed the most was standing right in front of her._

_Otto sighed. "If I could bring them all to you, I would, but for now just your brother will have to do."_

_"That's enough for me. That's more than enough for me. You're already generous towards me, I shouldn't be complaining." She said, lowering her head._

_"If there's anything bothering you or you don't like something, tell me. I'm here for you." He said as he lifted her head up, making her look at him. He didn't even realize what he was doing, but once he did, he quickly turned his head away, blushing._

_Elizabeta giggled at the two of them. "Not to be rude, Prince Otto, but you haven't commented on Alice's look so far. Sure it isn't finished, but it's done enough for a little compliment."_

_Elizabeta's comment only managed to make Otto blush even redder. "I... well... you... pretty..." He babbled out, not even sure himself what he wanted to say._

_It worked the magic. Alice was back to smiling and laughing again. Everything went back to how it's supposed to be. Otto was blushing and Alice was smiling._

_"I think we should leave soon. Are you finished?" Otto asked._

_Elizabeta went white. That's right the ball! And Alice still wasn't ready! "Oh, we gotta finish your hair! Quick!"_

_Alice was handing out flowers like a machine and Elizabeta made sure every single one of them fit in so well there's no way for Alice to lose any all night._

_Otto, meanwhile, watched this mess with confusion and a bit of entertainment. For some reason, it always interested him how women get ready. And now he was wittnessing exactly that._

_But his fun didn't last long as they were quickly finished. Elizabeta gathered some of the remaining roses and splashed them in water. Alice came running as soon as she did that and dipped her face into it. She gave her cheeks a few rubs and quickly pulled her head out._

_"I'm ready!" She yelled out._

_Otto stood in an even bigger confusion. "That was quick."_

_"Well, now you've seen how girls get ready. Or rather, young girls. For me it takes way longer." Elizabeta interjected._

_"Yes, it was interesting. Shall we go now? I have to greet the guests. Would you like to accompany me?" Otto asked Alice._

_Alice nodded wholeheartedly. "Yes! Yes! I want to greet my brother!"_

_Otto smiled. "Okay. Let's go then." He offered Alice his hand and lead her out of the room, leaving a giggling Elizabeta behind them._

_..._

_The hall was crowded with people. Most of them were around the tables, picking out food and chatting with each other, others were standing on the sides, either by themselves or with other people. Alice's mouth fell open when she saw all of them. Sure, she attended balls before as a young girl, but they were never this big. They never felt this lively._

_Otto let go of Alice's hand. "I have to do the greeting, you should stay here. When your brother comes, I'll signal you to come out. Is that alright?"_

_Alice nodded and, just as Otto was about to leave, she grabbed his coat. He stopped and turned back to her smiling face. "Good luck!" She said, drawing closer. Once close enough, she got on the tip of her toes and planted a small kiss on Otto's cheek. The same spot turned red as she stepped away, but in her defence, so did the rest of Otto's face._

_His hand went up to the spot, his shocked expression remaining. He allowed his fingers to touch the warm spot where she kissed him. If only she could do that to his entire face. Make it warm like that little spot. How he would love that._

_Alice smiled and went back to her position, waving at Otto. He regained his sense of reality and waved back at her before letting the curtain fall so she could remain hidden. At the same time, he wanted to hide her from everyone but himself, but on the other hand, he wanted to show her to everyone. He wanted her to remain a mystery, but he also wanted everyone to know who she is._

_"Why are you here and not greeting the guests?" His thoughts were interrupted by the one person who could ruin his dreams of being with Alice, his mother._

_"Hello, Mother. I just got here, I'll go right away." He bowed and run away as fast as he could._

_Many guests came to be greeted by the prince himself. Some were even coming twice or more. After some time, he lost count, waiting for one specific family and their servant boy. Finally, they came. He noticed a young boy, older by a few years than him, his darker red hair reminded Otto of Alice instantly. They were indeed similar. He was standing next to a much older, dark skinned boy. The Prince of Spain._

_"Prince Otto, may I say how happy we are that you're greeting us? We look foward to your eventual rule of the Holy Roman Empire. You will make a great emperor." The Queen of Spain spoke. Or was it the King. Otto wasn't sure. He wasn't listening anyway, just keeping his eyes on the young servant boy._

_"Yes, thank you very much. Please enjoy the ball. May I just request a word with the Prince?" Otto said, momentary tearing his eyes away from the boy._

_The royal pair nodded as well as the Prince himself. "Of course, Prince Otto." This time he was sure the Queen said it. Or it was indeed the King. They sound too similar. Like they are siblings.'_

Feliciano took a moment to laugh. This Ludwig. This Habsburg family joke was too terribly funny to him.

_'As soon as they left, Otto spoke. "I heard you got the boy from the Venetian family. May I borrow him for a moment? His sister is here." The moment he said that, the boy's eyes shot up._

_He looked at his owner, the Prince of Spain, with such hopeful eyes. It was obvious to everyone that he wanted to see her more than anything. The Prince just sighed and nodded. "I guess that's alright."_

_The boy smiled delightedly and Otto lead him to where he parted from Alice, showing the curtain away._

_As soon as she saw him, Alice squeeled. "It's you! Romano! It's really you!" She screamed, hugging the life out of her brother._

_"I'm glad to see you too, but please let me breathe." Romano said, gasping for air, but hugging her tightly._

_She loosened up, still smiling as wide as her face allowed it. This was the best thing to ever happen to her. To see her brother again. And looking at him, it was obvious he felt the same._

_"Romano, how are you? How have you been? How are they treating you?" Alice asked._

_"How long do we have?" Romano asked, turning to Otto, hopeful that the prince would allow them to stay longer together._

_Otto smiled at Alice. "Take as long as you wish, but be mindful of the dance. It would be nice to show off your new dress."_

_Alice returned the smile. "We'll be there. Thank you!" And she took Romano by the hand, leading him to the garden._

_Otto left with a smile on his face to greet and meet more guests. His heart now finally in place knowing Alice was happy. Her happiness was enough for him._

_..._

_It was time for the dance to begin. And she was nowhere to be found. Otto looked around the garden, around the halls, he searched the entire castle for her, but she wasn't there. At one point he even considered her to be gone forever. Possibly running away with her brother. He knew this wasn't the case, she was his friend. She would never leave him. But the possibility still lingered on._

_Elizabeta spotted him as he walked through the halls with his head lower than the ground itself. "Are you alright, Prince Otto?" She asked, drawing closer to him._

_"It's time for the dance and I can't find Alice." He sighed. "I let her leave with her brother, but I told her she should be back before the dance. She wasn't where I left her. I'm just worried something might have happened to her."_

_"I doubt that's the case, she's clumsy, but she has been more careful since she's been with us. Did you check the ballroom? Maybe she's looking for you as well." Elizabeta said._

_Otto looked up at her sadly. "Why would she, Betty? She's with her brother, she doesn't need me."_

_Elizabeta sighed. These children. "You are her friend. She puts too much trust in you. She knows getting hurt would worry you so she avoids it. Alice doesn't want you to worry. And right now, she's probably worried herself. Do you want her to worry about you?"_

_"No! Never! I-" he lingered on desparately. "I don't want that..."_

_"Then let's go look for her together. She probably searched the entire ballroom for you." With that, Elizabeta offered her hand for Otto to hold and the two walked towards the ballroom together._

_"I can't find him anywhere!" Frustrated, Alice sat on the nearest bench._

_"Why are you so obsessed with him? He'll find you. You said he always does." Romano said, sitting down next to his baby sister._

_"Yes, but there were never this many people. How is he supposed to find us with this crowd?"_

_Romano let out a sigh. "It's not 'us' he's looking for, it's you. Besides, this is his castle, he's the prince, it's not like something can happen to him."_

_Alice's eyes stretched as wide as they could. What if...? She stood up as quickly as she sat down. "What if something did happen to him? Romano, we have to help! I can't just sit here doing nothing if he's hurt!" She pulled at her brother, desparate to get him to stand._

_"Calm down. He's not hurt. If he was, this entire ball would be cancelled." Romano said, finally standing up._

_"What if he's hurt and there's no one around to help him and no one around to spread the news and there's blood and-"_

_"You just want him to ask you for a dance."_

_Alice paused. "What?"_

_"Did you really think I wouldn't notice? The look in your eyes as you speak of him. You fell in love, didn't you Alice?" Romano asked, his stance and voice as firm as a brick. He wasn't letting his sister go without answers._

_"No! I..." Alice mumbled. "I didn't... I... never wanted... to feel this way..."_

_"So you did. Alice, do you realize what you're doing? Easy for him, he'll go without punishment like they always do, but you... Do you really believe the Queen will have mercy on you for even looking at her son? You and your first sight love. You didn't think this through!" Romano almost yelled, but he was careful enough to not get them into any more trouble._

_Alice clenched her fists together, breaking away from her brother. Normally, any kind of violence would frighten her, but this. This made her stronger._ He  _made her stronger. "It wasn't love at first sight. I was scared of him. He's the next emperor of the bloody Holy Roman Empire! You know, the ones we fought with! Or did you forget grandpa's stories? And I've spent this whole time crying myself to sleep because I felt I wasn't worthy of even being his friend! I think this through every single damn night! But I'm not going to stop. I refuse to stop, Romano."_

_Romano stood in shock. He never saw his sister act like this. She was a calm and collected girl when they were all together, living here changed her. And he knew exactly what that trigger of change was. "You're going to get yourself killed like this."_

_She eased herself down. "So be it."_

_In that moment, Elizabeta came running towards them. Otto right behind her, face as red as a tomato from all the running._

_"There you are! See, Prince Otto, I told you she would be here." Elizabeta said to the young prince as soon as he made his way towards Alice and her brother. He was resisting the urge to hug her as soon as he saw her, but he knew his mother would be watching him in one way or another._

_Alice, however, didn't feel any fear from the queen and what she could do to her. She decided that whatever happens will happen anyway. There was no point in worrying over this anymore. So she hugged Otto as close as she could._

_If he wasn't too preoccupied by being hugged by the love of his life, Otto would have noticed the look of despise in Romano's eyes. 'He's going to get my sister killed for no reason.' Yet Romano wasn't doing anything about it. This was Alice's choice and not his._

_Elizabeta, meanwhile, was shooting death glares with a smile to anyone choosing to look down at the young pair. Nothing should ruin this little moment for them. Not the queen. Not Otto's brothers. Not Rod. Not even Romano was spared from a glare of hers. She gave Otto a little nudge to remind him where he was._

_Shooting up like a cannon, Otto blurted out. "Do you want to dance with me?"_

_That took Alice, Romano and even Otto himself by surprise. However, the positive reaction of Alice eased everyone. The pair finally letting go of each other only for Otto to grab Alice's hand, fingers softly brushing against one another. He led her away from the staring crowd to the dancing circle that was forming in the middle of the ballroom, soft but playful music playing in the background._

_Otto pulled Alice closer to himself, trying his hardest not to blush at her soft small giggles. Putting his free hand on her waist, he spun her. Both finally giving themselves to music and letting it guide them in their little dance. Soon, however, they couldn't hear anything. The music. The comments. Everything stopped for them. Now it was just each other. It was all that mattered anyway.'_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you lived through this chapter long enough, I'd like to say a few words. Please, please, please go read JuliusSneezer's new story: Blood Red Lilies and Baby Blue Cornflowers. Their writing is super amazing and the way they portray everyone is so good and inspiring. And I adore their England. So, yeah, go read it. You won't regret anything.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyy! I'm a day late but I'm here, I'm queer, I'm suffering.
> 
> WARNING!!!! Mentions of rape in this chapter. Proceed with caution.

_'A loud scream woke him up. Then a thud of his door. Then the shaking._

_"Wake up! Wake up please!" He heard a paniced familiar voice._

_Slowly, he opened his eyes. By the time he registered who was standing before him, said person begun to cry._

_When he could finally see, he noticed it was Alice who woke him up and who was crying now in front of him, pulling at his blanket like her life depended on it._

_"Alice... What's wrong? Why are you up so early?" Otto asked, rubbing the tears that fell down Alice's cheeks away._

_"I'm dying!" Alice cried out._

_Otto stared at her blankly, trying to process the situation. How could she be dying? Is she ill?_

_"How? Are you hurting somewhere?" He asked, inspecting her hands and face._

_Alice nodded. "I woke up in a pool of blood and it felt like someone was stabbing me in my stomach." She was sniffling and desparately cuddling Otto's blanket._

_"Blood?" Otto blinked. "Was it coming out directly from your stomach or, uh, lower?"_

_"I searched myself for wounds, but- AAUGH" Alice jumped back from the bed, falling on her knees and clutching her gut. Almost immediately a red stain began forming on her green dress._

_Oh._

_That was all that went through Otto's head. An louder sobbing dragged him back from his head into reality. This kind of situation called for an adult help._

_Otto squeezed her hand. "Alice. Listen, you're not going to die. I'll go get Betty, she'll help you with this. You just stay here and wait for us, okay?" He let go of her hand and, once Alice nodded, run out of the room to find Elizabeta._

_He run as fast as he could to the servant rooms. Quickly spotting Elizabeta's room, he knocked loudly. "Betty! Betty! Wake up!"_

_A thud and dragging could be heard until the door revealed a tangled mess of brown hair which Otto assumed was Elizabeta._

_"What is it, Prince Otto?" She asked, brushing her hair away from her eyes which were... very... purple and green._

_"It's Alice. She needs your help. Quickly!" Otto grabbed Elizabeta by the hand and dragged her all the way to his room. That statement implied stairs. Which Elizabeta was extremely uncomfortable with this early._

_Finally they made it to Otto's room before he stopped. "I'll leave you two girls." He closed the door once Elizabeta entered._

_What greeted Elizabeta was a crying bloody mess that was Alice. One look at the child sitting in front of her was enough for Elizabeta to understand this situation. "Oh, dear."_

_She cuddled close to Alice. "Oh, dear. Oh, dear. My poor Alice. You just entered the most painful part of your life. You became a woman." She said._

_Alice couldn't control herself, tears rolling down her cheeks like rain during a storming night. This made no sense to her. She was bleeding out and hurting. She heard stories from her mom about how becoming a woman was the most beautiful part of every girls life. She wanted to be a woman. This was nowhere near beautiful._

_"Betty, I don't like this! I don't want this!" She had thought she would die from this, now she wished she could._

_"Shh, dear. Come. I'll explain everything in my room. It's going to be okay." Elizabeta said and helped Alice stand up._

_As they exited, Elizabeta gave Otto a kind look. The look that said she's going to take care of this. Otto sighed in relief, returning to his room._

_He knew what this meant. Alice was no longer a child. He learnt this by watching his older sisters. Although he didn't know much, he knew that this kind of bleeding was something very important. Maybe, he should ask them to explain it to him._

_Maybe not. They would question his sudden curiosity. He loved his sisters, but not enough to trust them not to tell his mother. He'll just ask Rod. When he gets some more sleep.'_

"Mood." Feliciano said, as he was doing some morning reading, taking a few sips from his coffee every now and then.

_'Elizabeta was having a hard time. Was this how her mother felt with her? Because it sure was complicated. Comforting someone who just got the first taste of period pains was as complicated as deciding which tablecloth to place for dinner. They all looked the same to her. Well, some had lace._

_"Okay, take these rags. There's not really any other way for us to prevent bleeding onto our clothes so we just use old rags. You want to wash them a lot. Place them between your legs." Elizabeta explained, handing Alice some old rags she dug out of her closet. "Avoid wearing anything white in public, trust me."_

_"How do I, um, keep them from falling out?" Alice asked, adjusting them in a way that was somewhat comfortable. She was wiping her tears away like a madman._

_"I'm looking for that at the moment. You're going to need some lady pants. I kept some of mine when I was your age, I just need to find them." She said, still rummaging her closet._

_Alice nodded. "It'll be alright. You're not alone in this." She kept repeating that like a mantra in order to calm herself down._

_After a few minutes of silence, Alice asked. "What does this mean, Betty? What's going to happen to me now?"_

_Elizabeta, finally finding some old pink lady pants and handing them to Alice, sighed. "A lot more of this. This means your body is ready for you to become a mother. But it's telling you that in a murderous way. I guess it's just not good with words." She finally managed to get a giggle out of Alice, no matter how short it was._

_"How do I become a mother anyway?" Alice asked._

_Elizabeta huffed out a response. "Well, as far as I know you need a man. Unfortunately. But the world is never kind to women."_

_Alice nodded. "I agree. Why do you hate men, Betty?"_

_Elizabeta sat next to the young girl, hugging her legs. "I've never met a good one."_

_"You met Prince Otto."_

_"Yes, but he's still just a boy. He still has a lot to learn about being a man and that's sure enough to change him. Who knows, maybe he starts treating you like my father did my mother." Elizabeta's hand went up to Alice's head, softly stroking her hair._

_"Did he treat her badly, your mother?" Alice asked, taking Elizabeta's hand into her own. The tables have turned._

_"Horribly, darling. But you don't have to bother your head with that. They are both long dead anyway." Elizabeta smiled._

_"You asked about being a mother. Do you really want to know?" Elizabeta asked, cuddling Alice closer to herself._

_Alice nodded. "Tell me."_

_"Did you ever notice how different your body is from your brother's?"_

_"Yeah, I don't have a pudding prick and apples hanging off my body." Alice said.'_

Feliciano burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Lovino asked from the living room.

"Nothing." Feliciano paused to giggle some more. "Just this one part in the book."

"You should be doing the dishes and not reading that German book." Lovino said and turned the volume on TV louder to block out Feliciano's laughter.

Feliciano chose to ignore him. He has to read now, he can do the dishes later.

_'Elizabeta giggled at this child. "Yes, you indeed don't. But to become a mother those are the exact parts you need. Especially the pudding prick. It goes inside the blood fountain when it's not bloody and clogs it with some other liquid. That clog eventually becomes a baby." She explained, trying her hardest to keep a straight face._

_Alice blinked up at her. "That's a lot of work."_

_Elizabeta nodded. "Yes, and you have to deal with the baby as it grows inside you all on your own."_

_"I'd still like to close the blood fountain. Do you think Prince Otto will help me?" Alice asked, innocence in her voice._

_"I don't think he's grown enough to help you with that yet, but please don't ask him that before getting married." Elizabeta spilled out as quickly as she could._

_"Oh."_

_"Yeah."_

_"So I'm stuck with this forever?" Alice quickly changed the subject, not wanting to revive her own fears when Elizabeta managed to seal them in a box mere months ago._

_"Yes. Unless you have a baby, then you get a pause." Elizabeta answered._

_"What about men? What do they get?"_

_"No idea. Nothing, I believe."_

_That angered Alice. She gets blood and pain and she can't control either of it, but men get nothing. They just exist with no pain or anything. "Unfair." She said._

_"Very." Elizabeta agreed._

_"What will Prince Otto do to me now?" Alice asked._

_"What do you mean?" Elizabeta stroked Alice's hair._

_"Do you think he'll put his pudding prick into me without asking first? Like what Prince of Spain does to my brother." Alice clutched her dress._

_Elizabeta's eyes widened. "You should tell Otto about your brother. No one should go through what your brother is going. And no, I don't think he will. I don't believe he can hurt you."_

_"Is my brother in danger?" Alice asked, new tears welling up in her eyes._

_"Yes. He's likely in a huge pain, just like how you are. He needs help. I'm sure Otto will help him." Elizabeta said._

_Alice nodded, wiping away her tears on her dress. She will need to wash it anyway. "I'll tell him." She stood up. "Thank you, Betty. For everything." Offering Elizabeta one final smile, Alice left for her own room to change._

_When she entered her room, a blond haired boy was sitting on her bed._

_"Prince Otto?" She called, startling the boy whose head was deep in thoughts about how small her room was._

_"Alice..." He looked up at her, blushing at being caught._

_"Why are you here?" She asked, sitting down as comfortable as she could on her hay and wood bed next to the young prince._

_"I came to see how you were. Was Betty of help to you?" Otto asked, staring down at his fingers which weren't used to the cold of servant rooms._

_"Yes. She explained everything to me. And she also told me to tell you about Romano."_

_Otto looked at her in confusion. "What about your brother?"_

_Alice took a deep breath. "The Prince of Spain is doing bad things to him. With his..." she trailed off, pointing to the inbetween part of her legs._

_Otto blinked in surprise. "Your brother-"_

_"He doesn't like it." Alice interuppted._

_Otto looked back to his fingers. A mix of grief and anger forming inside his body. "I'll make him stop. Whatever it takes."_

_"Thank you." Alice nodded._

_"He told you that on the ball, did he?" Otto asked._

_"Yes."_

_Silence filled the air between the two._

_"Will you do that to me too?" Alice asked, inching away from Otto._

_"Never!" Otto practically yelled. His hands went up to cover his mouth when Alice shivered under his voice. "I apologise. I didn't mean to yell. I won't ever do that to you, Alice. Only bad people do that."_

_Alice breathed out in relief, but stayed quiet._

_Otto continued. "People become beasts when those urges take over. We trully are animals at our core."_

_More silence. The air was so thich they could both hear as the cooks baked some bread for the day, despite the kitchen being very distant from the servant rooms._

_Otto broke the silence again. "Don't work today. Or any other day when you start bleeding. You must be in a lot of pain from it."_

_Alice looked at him. "I am, but that doesn't mean I get to ignore my duties as a maid just because I'm bleeding."_

_"I'll let Betty know. She and other maids may take breaks as well when it happens. You need to rest from it after all." Otto said, taking Alice's hand into his own._

_Alice shivered at the cold touch of Otto's hand. But soon it melted away and the feeling became that of pleasure. She was certian it had something to do with it being Otto who was holding her hand. "Okay then." She said._

_"But not here." Otto said quickly._

_Alice blinked. "What?"_

_"This bed is long ways from comfortable for this kind of situation. You will be sleeping in my bed from now on." A soft blush made its way on Otto's cheeks as he said that._

_He pulled her up from bed. "Come."_

_"Wait!" Alice pulled her hand out of his. "I can't go like this." She pointed to her bloody dress._

_It took a moment for Otto to realize. "Oh. Yeah. I'll wait for you then." He exited the room and waited for Alice to change outside her door._

_"I'm ready!" Came from the other side of the door and Otto opened them. Alice was wearing a deep brown dress that was way too big for her._

_"Betty gave it to me. She said it's not a good idea to wear anything white so she gave me this. It's a bit big though." She smiled._

_Otto blushed. "You look lovely. Shall we go?" He offered his hand to Alice who happily took it as Otto led the way to his room._

_"Make yourself comfortable." He said as he closed the door behind Alice, who jumped at his bed like she was jumping in a hill of leaves in autumn._

_"Oh, this is so perfect." She said as she wiggled herself inside the blanket, taking a few pillows with her._

_Otto laughed at the sight. He was happy that Alice was enjoying herself. "Move over a bit." He said, making his way to the bed as well._

_Alice's head appeared from beneath the blanket. "You have more than enough." She giggled._

_Otto laughed. "Selfish, are we?" He cuddled close to her._

_"You should sleep. You woke up in pain this morning." He said._

_Alice smiled and held him closer to herself. Despite not being able to see it, she knew Otto's face was as red as the pool of blood she woke up into this morning. "Can you stroke my hair for me? It helps me sleep."_

_Otto nodded, gulping. His hand making its way to the temple of Alice's head, stroking bits of her hair all the way to its tips. He admired how red it was, glad that they weren't in England. He repeated the proces a couple more times before he heard soft snoring._

_Otto smiled. He thought Alice couldn't get more cuter, but he was very obviously wrong. Glad that his heart chose this beautiful girl, sleeping softly in his arms, to fall in love with, he placed a kiss on her head. "Goodnight, love." He whispered._

_He couldn't find it in himself to get up from the bed, so he too drifted into the land of dreams next to his beloved.'_

Feliciano melted. He moved up to his room long ago because Lovino's renovation shows were too loud for him to read. He was glad that he did that othervise he would be like a snowman in spring all over the dining room's floor.

"Feliciano! Dishes! Now!" Lovino yelled.

Feliciano completely forgot about the dishes. But of course, Lovino the Mom will always remind him. No matter how busy Feliciano is.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify, Prince of Spain from the story is not Antonio. I just don't want to imply that Spain (Antonio) is a rapist. Cuz he's not. Toni is precious. Okay, I'm done.
> 
> Leave some comments please, they really help motivate me to write more. And I like to talk to people.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a bit late I know, but honestly it was a long week. This is probably the last chapter I will be posting "normally" till March cuz midterms, finals, ect. I'll try posting as much as I can during holidays and all, but no promises. If I have time, I will also post the first part of my series so look forward to that as well. I know I say this a lot but patience is all I ask for. And comments. I love comments. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter.

By the lunch time, Feliciano was fairly certain of two things: this was by far his favourite book. And he finally understood why all that talk of it.

This book turned from a fluffy romantic story into the love of Feliciano's life.

_'Otto walked impatiently to the servant rooms. Alice was currently working, cleaning some old storage rooms. He had a new job for her._

_"Alice! I need to ask you a favour." He yelled, reaching the hall and waiting._

_Soon enough, he spotted a redhaired girl in one of the blue dresses he bought her. "What is it, My Prince?" She asked, bouncing on her way to Otto._

_Otto, as always, was as red as the halls whenever she used that nickname on him. "You're from Venice. I heard it's known for it's art. Do you think you could teach me how to paint?" He asked._

_"Of course! Let me just finish my work and I'll meet you in the garden." She said and run off to quickly complete her work. She would be lying if she said she wasn't excited for this. Painting was her number one love after all. Right behind Otto._

_He waited for her in the garden. The view of the flowers growing peacefully on the early spring morning made him feel a bit lonely. Otto wished for a certain someone to enjoy them with him. When will she finish her work?_

_He sat there sighing, unaware of anything but the flowers in front of him. Then he felt a pair of cold hands on his shoulders causing him to jump up in the air a bit. He turned around to see a giggling Alice. His Alice._

_"Did I frighten you?" She asked, her giggling made her voice sound a bit more pitched than it normally was._

_Otto blushed, still shocked from the scare attack. "Yes. Don't do that again, please. You almost sent me flying to the sun." He said._

_Alice continued giggling. "I'm sorry. You wanted to learn how to paint, right?" She asked._

_"Yes. I've set up some equipment nearby. Shall we go?" Otto asked, offering his hand._

_"Yes!" Alice squeeled in excitement. This time she didn't accept Otto's hand offering and instead hurried off to wherever she guessed Otto could have set the equipment up._

_"Um, Alice?" He said and she turned. "Not there." He said and pointed to the opposite direction. Whoops._

_Alice walked back to his side and took his hand, embarrassed but smiling widely. Otto's hand offerings were always extremely cute._

_They made their way to a small hill just above the garden. It seemed like the perfect place to paint. Flowers were in bloom and the grass beneath their feet shone slightly thanks to the sun shining the few drops of water remaining on it from the early morning rain. Early spring truly was in the air. All of it made Alice wish they could stay here forever._

_Two wooden canvas boards grabbed her attention from the grass and flowers. From the looks of it, they appeared to be largely decorated, probably worth quite a sum of money. She would have to give Otto a lecture on that later again. Upon drawing closer, she spotted some brand new paintbrushes. And in a good quality as not a single hair was sticking out of the order. Two chairs were also there, ready for when the young couple needed some rest from their activity. Alice decided resting time was now and took a seat._

_"So, what shall we be drawing?" She asked._

_Otto blushed, already picturing a perfect painting in his head, but he did not dare say it out loud. Instead he blurted out. "I was thinking maybe some animals and flowers and, you know, spring stuff."_

_Alice smiled softly. "That sounds lovely. It's been quite a while since I've last painted anything so I might not make a great tutor, but you've chosen an excellent start."_

_Otto blushed at the compliment. "I believe you would be a great tutor. You can go ahead and remind yourself a bit if you want. We have all day at our hands." He smiled._

_Alice nodded, taking one of the thicker brushes into her hand. She run her thumb across the hair on the brush. "Soft." She mumbled, opening a can of green paint, smelling it. It wasn't expired, that was certain.'_

"Me." Feliciano laughed.

_'Behind them stood two buckets. One with clean water and one empty. Alice assumed the empty one was for the dirty water. She looked around for the cups. "My Prince?" She asked._

_Otto, who had previously just been standing and staring at every movement Alice was making, drowning in her delicateness with art, snapped back to reality. "Yes?" He asked, a bit too squeeky than his usual voice._

_"Where are the cups?" She asked._

_"Cups?" Otto stared in disbelief, there were obviously right-_

_Oh._

_He forgot the cups.'_

At this point Feliciano was dying from laughter. He related to everything in this chapter. Almost as if this Ludwig was writing about him.

_'Blushing, Otto rushed off back to the castle, leaving Alice to her giggling fit. She must have made the very same mistake multiple times, but watching someone else make it was extremely hilarious to her. Soon, however, she calmed down and was swooning in the adorableness of the young prince right up to the moment he showed up, carrying two cups. His blood red face caused a reaction from her own, a light blush sweeping over it. Alice tried her best to mask it with her hands. Hopefully Otto can't see right through her._

_"I-" Otto started, "got the cups."_

_"Thank you for your work, My Prince." Alice smiled, taking one cup, brushing her hand with Otto's slightly, enough for the dreaded colour red's return to their faces._

_Otto accidentally dropped his cup and fell on his knees trying to pick it up, which resulted in another giggling fit from Alice. She offered her hand to him. The tables have turned._

_Otto accepted her hand, squeezing it just a bit more harder, enough for him to absorb Alice's kind energy from that small hand of hers. And some of her warmth as well. Even when they were standing and facing each other, Otto still a bit taller than Alice, they didn't let go. These were the small moments they couldn't afford to enjoy while inside the palace walls. The dangers of Queen always lurking in the back of their minds. Right now they were free from it._

_"I believe we should start, otherwise we'll miss the daylight." Alice was the first to break their small staring contest, walking towards the water filled bucket and filling her cup before returning to her seat._

_Otto stood for a moment longer, blinking the moment they had away, cursing at the day for being too short. "If you say so." He said, before following Alice's suit and filling his cup, seating himself afterwards._

_Alice dipped her paintbrush just a tiny bit before dipping it into the paint, her eyes focused on the grass before her as she took every small detail of it in her head. Seemingly without noticing, her hand moved towards the white canvas and, before you knew it, there was a green line going across it on the bottom half._

_She smiled to herself, glad that she hasn't forgotten any of the wonderful feelings that were art. Alice repeated the process several times, making a rough sketch of how it was supposed to look before turning to face Otto._

_Otto had been absorbing her movements up until the moment she stopped and faced him. Luckily for him, this time he wasn't blushing._

_"Do you want to start?" She asked._

_Otto nodded. Alice moved closer to him, taking his right hand which was holding the paintbrush. Adjusting it the way she saw fit, she continued holding Otto's hand from behind, guiding him towards the white canvas. If he hadn't known better, he would say he was growing a bit feverish, as everything around him started to spin._

_Alice showed Otto a couple of movements to make for beginning, before letting go of his hand. "Try it." She said._

_Otto dipped his brush into some water, careful not to take too much before dipping it in paint. He breathed in and out, closing his eyes and running the brush across the canvas. When he opened them, he was met with a slightly wobbly green line on the white background and a soft smile from Alice to encourage him to continue._

_After a couple of more strokes, Alice deemed him ready enough to continue on his own and returned to her own painting. Otto still had a few troubles with little details, such as painting the rabbits foot, and Alice gladly helped him out. They were having fun in their own world, away from statuses and works, just two children painting outside. But soon, the sun begun setting. The day coming to an end._

_Otto was working on some final details, the sun enough above horizon not to ruin his painting. He turned to Alice, needing her final judgement._

_Snore._

_Otto blinked at her. When had she fallen asleep? Sure, it's been a long day, but he didn't expect it to be that long. Still, the thought of waking her up was something he couldn't bring himself to do. It didn't even cross his mind. Instead, he got a better idea. The timing just perfect._

_He turned his board to face Alice and pulled out a new canvas. The only reason he asked Alice to teach him how to paint was so he could paint her. Alice falling asleep was a perfect time to do it. And how lovely she would look with the sun shining those rosy cheeks and that lovely red hair. She truly looked like a princess to him. If he could, he would have married her on the spot._

_He somehow managed to finish it before the sun set down completely, satisfied with results. Now he needed to wake his princess up. But before that, he had to hide the painting somewhere she won't look before he could gather some courage to show her. Otto sprinted towards the castle, hiding the painting behind the clothes in the closet. Hopefully Alice won't be needing anything from it. Or cleaning it anytime soon._

_Making sure it was well hidden, Otto rushed back to Alice, glad to find her still asleep on her chair. She looked very comfortable sleeping there, it pained Otto a lot to wake her. But he had no other choice. He had to do it. However, one waking up kiss never hurt anyone._

_Brushing away any hair that fell on her face, Otto slowly moved his head closer to hers. His lips met with Alice's forehead, slightly frightened of being seen and judged by anyone. Pulling back, he looked at her once again. What kind of a miracle did it take for this angel to walk on the same earth as him? What did he do that earned him just a glimpse of this sweetheart?_

_He closed his eyes again, allowing their foreheads to touch even just briefly. That was the moment Alice chose to wake up, accidentally bumping her forehead against Otto's._

_"Ow, ow, ow, ow!" Otto grabbed his forehead. Who knew Alice had such strong head?_

_"Ow! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" Alice panicked, seemingly quick to recover from the little accident as she was already checking on Otto._

_"It's alright. I'm alright. Are you?" He asked, holding his forehead with one hand and Alice's cheek with other, attempting to calm her down._

_Alice nodded. "I'm sorry." She said one more time. Otto shook his head that it was just an accident._

_"It's already dark, I think we should head to the castle. You must be tired from sleeping in that chair." Otto smiled, pulling Alice up._

_"I had a really nice dream so I do not mind. I'll clean up." She said, already grabbing the brushes and buckets._

_"No, leave it to me. I brought it here, I should clean it up. Go get some proper sleep. Maybe tell me about the dream one day." Otto said, taking everything Alice grabbed into his hands. Alice nodded, knowing it was useless to argue against Otto once he had something set in his mind._

_"If you say so, My Prince. Good night then." She bowed and run off._

_"Good night, Liebe." Otto whispered, knowing full well Alice couldn't hear him. He got ready to work right away.'_

"Aww! Those two are so cute! When am I gonna get such a nice relationship?" Feliciano giggled like a little girl. He knew the answer was when he got out of the house, but that was too much work. And besides, most people just weren't his type.

He made his way to the living room, deciding to get some snacks before continuing. There was no one to scare him this time luckily.

Lovino was on the couch, watching some Spanish telenovelas. He would never admit of doing this to anyone though, being famous for resenting any language that wasn't Italian. Luckily, Felicaino and Romeo were just his brothers. If they spoke a word of it, he knew when and how to kill them.

Romeo was still in college, the good little student he was. Or wasn't if he was hanging out with the ladies behind the college building. Either way, he wasn't home.

"They are still fighting?" Feliciano asked Lovino, but the latter was way into the series to answer the question. Or his phone, which he left on the little wall separating the dining room amd kitchen from the living room, as it was buzzing constantly. Probably Antonio.

Ignored by his brother, Feliciano set on doing what he originally wanted to do, get a snack. Rummaging through the fridge, he found some chocolate. Perfect. He was just about to head upstairs when Lovino's phone buzzed once again, the title of the annoying texter catching Feliciano's eyes.

Toni Amore.

With heart and tomato emojis.

_Oh no._ Was all that run through Feliciano's mind.

Breathe in.

He unlocked Lovino's phone, grateful to his brother for not setting it to make a sound once unlocked. He decided to read some of the messages. Just to make sure.

Breathe out.

There was no doubt. No doubt at all. It was the same Toni. Their family friend.

Breathe in.

_No! No! No!_

Breathe out.

That would mean only one thing. His brother was-

"What do you think you're doing, Feliciano?"

_Oh no..._   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant what I said about comments in the first note.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, after a long long while, I finally got the time to post again. Thank you, holidays.  
> This chapter is a special treat for holidays ;-)

He kept thinking about it the entire day.

Mostly he wondered why Lovino hadn't said anything. They were brothers, surely there's no need for fear between them. No matter how scary it can be.

_"Give. Me. My. Phone. Back." Lovino growled at him._

_"Lovi, just. Here." Feliciano handed it back to his brother, but it wasn't enough to erase the anger from his eyes. "You could have said something. I know what country we live in, I know it can be scary, but we're brothers. We're here for you."_

_"Feliciano. Shut the hell up. You don't understand any of this."_

_"But I do, Lovi, I-"_

_"I said shut up!"_

_Silence._

_"If you dare speak of this again, I swear to you, I will kill you." Lovino said, clenching his fists, almost breaking the phone he held in his left hand._

_Feliciano just nodded, unsure of any other action he could take without angering his brother more._

_"Good. Now get out of my sight." Feliciano run at the command. There was nothing else he could do._

Even just remembering the unfortunate event hurt Feliciano on the inside. He was happy for his brother, but scared at the same time. Scared of the world they lived in. A dangerous world. Almost as if there was no room for love inside of it.

_'But why don't we just create the love that's been missing. No one would get hurt then.'_

Hopeful as it was, avoiding pain was useless. And deep down Feliciano knew that. Someday, Lovino will get hurt for liking boys, for loving Antonio. That was what scared Feliciano the most. Finding his brother beat up and hurt just because he loved someone of the same gender.

Thoughts like this were of no use to Feliciano, they were just making him cry. Sensitive little spirit, he was. All he ever wished for was to make the world a better place. Picking up  _Silence in Venice_ , he hugged it very closely to calm down.

' _Were you also trying to escape reality, Ludwig?'_

Once calm enough to continue, he opened the book, praying it would suck him up until all the dangers of the world disappeared.

_'As special as his announcement was, Otto was slightly scared. Sure he begged his mother for this trip for a while, yet somehow he had a feeling something would go terribly wrong._

_Alice was just about to go to bed when Otto entered their room, an unsure smile on his face. Something was up._

_"Welcome, My Prince." Alice said, making Otto blush as usual. At least now it matched his smile._

_"I have some great news. We might have to start packing up soon." He said, his smile only growing bigger._

_Alice blinked. Were they going somewhere? "Packing?" She asked._

_"We're leaving for Venice in 3 days." He said, trying to surpass his excitement._

_Not a single sound could be heard, not the dogs barking or the rustling of servants beneath them. Just silence, seemingly lasting forever._

_Then a squeel echoed their room. Alice's squeel. Followed up by a series of jumps as she made her way to Otto, hugging him tightly. Tighter than she usually does anyway._

_"You can't be serious! This is a dream! Please tell me this isn't a dream!" Was all Otto could make out as she spoke quickly in between a mixture of tears and squeels._

_His smile never once faded, the worry he had before disappearing almost completely from his mind and face. "This isn't a dream, Alice. We're really going to Venice. You'll get to see your parents."_

_"I get to see mother and father..." This time Alice was full out crying into Otto's shoulder. He had grown taller over the years. Oh the years... After these long 4 years of her life away from them, she will finally see the people who raised her. Nothing could make her haplier than she was in this moment._

_"Yes. I see the excitement got the best out of you, I think we should go to sleep now. We'll start packing up tomorrow." He said._

_"Yes, let's do that. Thank you so much, My Prince." Getting on the tip of her toes, Alice planted a soft kiss on Otto's cheek. Ever since they started sharing the room together, Alice has been kissing him more and more. But it was never on the lips. She was too scared for that._

_..._

_"Wake up! Wake up, Prince Otto! We have got to pack!" Alice shook the poor prince sleeping peacefully. She has already dressed herself for the day, wearing a beautiful red dress Otto bought her for her birthday. She didn't have any of her maid duties, but she still had to work on packing everything for their trip._

_"Just a little bit more." Otto mumbled out from underneath the sheets, rolling to the other side._

_But Alice was having none of this. Lifting up her dress a bit to make some space for her knees, she climbed on the bed. Sitting in a position where Otto's thorso was between her legs, she leaned in to whisper. "I'm going to tell Betty about the little 'incident' four days ago if you don't wake up."_

_She smirked once Otto turned to face her, his eyes wide open as well as his mouth. "You would not." He said in disbelief. What happened to his sweet Alice?_

_"Maybe. If you can get up quick enough to stop me." As she said that, she jumped off the bed, sprinting towards the door._

_As quickly as he could, Otto jumped at his feet. Still tangled up in the blanket, he tripped his way to the door, going after Alice. He finally caught her in the servants hall at the price of both of them falling to the floor. He did manage to shelter Alice from hitting her head._

_Everyone who happened to be nearby just gave them The Look, used to all the weird acts of their friendship. Even if they were 16 years of age and not children anymore, it was still interesting to see the two of them living their lives like they will never grow up._

_Paying absolutely no mind to the servants, Alice and Otto made a laughing mess out of each other._

_"You're awake!" Alice exclaimed in between her giggles._

_"Not by my own will." Otto run his fingers through Alice's hair, messing her braid up._

_"No, I just did that!" Alice pouted._

_Otto didn't get a chance to respond. Elizabeta had walked up to them looking slightly cranky. "What are you two up to now?" She asked._

_"I had to get Prince Otto out of the bed to help me pack. We're going to Venice!" Alice smiled, sharing their little secret to anyone who happened to be nearby as well as some who weren't._

_"Yes, that's lovely indeed. But could you please take your waking up and packing somewhere that isn't the servant's hall. We have a lot of work." Elizabeta said and helped them both on their feet, shooing them away._

_Alice happily skipped along the halls to their room while Otto looked like he could still use a couple of hours of sleep. However, he didn't wish to return to his bed, afraid of what Alice would do to him if he did. There was no way to avoid this, he had to help her pack._

_..._

_Three days of packing went by in the blink of an eye and soon they were standing before the carriage prepared to take them to Venice. Everyone stood behind them, saying their goodbyes and wishing them safe travel. Despite Otto's wishes, even the Queen was there, looking down on Alice._

_Speaking of Alice, she had been hogging off Elizabeta for a while now, not allowing Otto a chance for a hug as well. Even though Otto didn't completely mind it. He only minded parting from his mother._

_"I shall have guards accompany you every step you take. I don't trust that little pimp to not drown you in the chanals." She said, her nose as high as the towers of the castle._

_"Mother, I will be fine. I promise Alice won't do such a thing." Otto said, his left eye twitching slightly. Oh, how he wanted to argue with his mother about Alice. But he couldn't._

_"Call for her then. I shall have a word with her as well." She said and Otto reluctantly obeyed._

_Elizabeta was finally freed from Alice's strong hugs, but that didn't ease her worries. Who knows what the Queen would do to her if she found out something didn't go according to her plan?_

_Alice bowed before the Queen, trying to calm herself from trembling. What if the Queen changed her mind and she can not go home with Otto in the end?_

_The Queen scowled and spoke. "If you try anything with my son, I will have your head served to the dogs on a silver plate. Do you understand me, little girl?"_

_Alice swallowed the saliva in her mouth, leaving it dry. "I understand, Your Majesty." She nodded, still terrified beyond words._

_"Good. You may leave now." She said and turned her back to Alice, walking away. Alice breathed out and bowed after the Queen, quickly walking towards Otto. They were ready to leave._

_Boarding the carriage, they waved their final goodbyes to everyone and set for Venice. The first time in a long while._

_Since the drive to Venice would take them a while, they had to find various ways to entertain each other. Mostly they talked. Alice told Otto everything she could remember from her hometown, even if Otto memorised every word about Venice Alice had told him over the years by heart. Sometimes Otto talked about his life before Alice came, but it wasn't something he was too keen on remembering. It was in times like this he realized how meaningless his life was without Alice. How meaningless it would be if she ever left._

_Other times when they didn't talk, they would sing some children's songs. Or play with rocks they picked up on stops, trying to see whose small house lasts the longest with the carriage moving. So far there was no winner._

_Of course they slept as well. Not used to the cold of the carriage, they had to cuddle even closer than they normally would. This normally resulted in either one of them waking with a big blush on their faces, depending on who woke up first._

_Finally the trip was over. They made it to Venice. Standing on the port as the sea splashed around, the legendary town shining this close before them. Awaiting the boat to carry them across, the sight got different reactions from the two of them. Otto was standing completely still in awe. He had seen many beautiful towns in his life, but none of them as bright as Venice. None more beautiful than Venice. Alice on the other hand, teared up at the sight. Finally, she was home._

_The boat was quick to arrive and they boarded successfully. All that was left was to cross the sea and they would enter Venice itself. No one spoke as the boat sailed. Otto and Alice both in awe at the town they were about to enter._

_Although the first step on the Venetian land wasn't all that impressive, it became more so as they made their way towards the San Marco Square. Everything around them was extraordinary, making both of them feel complete showering in the beauty. All of this was making Alice's eyes wet with tears._

_"Do you have any buisness to attend to?" She turned to face Otto, who couldn't keep his eyes away from anything Venice had to offer to them._

_"Ah," he turned to face her, slightly startled, "no, not really. I mean, I have a meeting with the Doge, but that's not due until tomorrow. We can go sightseeing now if you want."_

_Alice smiled. "I'd like to go see my family if that's possible. Then we can go sightseeing."_

_Otto nodded. "Yeah, let us do that." He let Alice guide him towards her house, or at least the house she remembered last. Her family had to move out once they lost all their money._

_The walk from San Marco to Alice's house wasn't long, just slightly more to the left from the end of the ship port. She even got to show Otto where her previous house was. A beautiful palace that was now rusting away after all these years. Otto made a mental note to buy it back later for Alice and have it decorated like it once was._

_They were now standing in front of Alice's house, she was pinching herself to check if this all was real. It was strange to believe it is. Strange to believe she was really home. Finally collecting enough courage and proof it was all real, Alice made her way towards the house, Otto tagging along._

_She knocked on the door and an unknown lady answered it._

_"My apologies, I'm the daughter of Lorenzo Belli. Do you happen to know where my parents are?" Alice asked politely in Italian. Otto understood everything she said. She has been teaching him Italian for four years.'_

"I'm 22 and I'm still struggling." Feliciano commented, doubting Ludwig's abilities to learn a language in four years.

_'The lady's expression dropped. Otto had a feeling he knew what was coming, drawing closer to Alice. "I'm sorry, young lady. My deepest condolances, your parents are dead." The lady said, confirming Otto's fears. He took Alice's hand in his own._

_Alice's whole world was falling apart. Dead? How? Why? Why them? She had too many questions, opening her mouth to voice them out, but no sound came. Just choked down sobs._

_"There was a fire in the place where they worked. They died among few other people. I'm very sorry. You may come in if you want to rest. I know it's a lot to take in." The lady continued, opening her doors wide for both of them to come in._

_Alice shook her head, dropping down on her knees. Otto, who was still holding her hand, lowered himself down next to her, holding her closely. The two guards who accompanied them on their way watching them closely. Otto was almost certain they were going to report this little situation to his mother, but he didn't care. Alice needed him now more than ever._

_It took Alice a while before she calmed down enough to talk. She thanked the lady for passing the information to her before she stormed off as far away as she could get. Otto ran after her, barely keeping up. Somewhere along the way they lost the guards as well as themselves. Alice wasn't sure where she was going, she just had to get away._

_"Alice!" Otto called for her. "Where are you going?!"_

_She stopped in her tracks, her messy braid covering her eyes as she looked down on the tiled floor of Venice._

_"I wanted so much to come here to see my parents, but I got even that taken away from me! Four years of wishes!" And with anger in her voice, she continued running._

_At the end of Alice's way was a bridge. The largest bridge Otto has seen so far. Alice had climbed it to the point where the view was at it's best. The sun stood just slightly above the horizon, painting the sky so orange that in Otto's eyes it blended into the color of Alice's hair._

_He climbed the bridge after her, pulling her closely as she wept, ignoring the beautiful scenery._

_"Romano doesn't know... He doesn't know we're alone now. God, why couldn't you just take us with them? Why do you have to take away everyone I love?" Alice mumbled, loud enough for only Otto to hear._

_He brushed his fingers through her braids, messing them up even more and exposing the curls hidden inside of them. "You're not alone, Alice. Don't ever think that you are. Everything will be alright, we'll tell Romano and, possibly, you could be together again." He whispered._

_Alice jumped up at his words, slapping his hand away from her hair. Something she would have never done, but this was not a typical situation for the two of them. Otto didn't understand! He just didn't understand the pain she was in! How much she wished for it all to end... "You don't understand, do you?! You have never known pain like this! This isn't about being alone or not! Why did you even follow me here?! You know why I'm here." She yelled, her head turning towards the water flowing peacefully underneath the bridge for a split second before facing Otto again._

_Inside Otto, emotions mixed up. It took him a while before the bricks in his brain connected and he realized what Alice was here to do. His eyes widened and he yelled back. "Don't you dare even think that, Alice! I might not understand what you are going through, but I'm here to help you out! I'm here for you! The death of your parents doesn't have to mean your death as well! We can work through this toge-" he couldn't finish the sentance._

_"It doesn't matter anyway because you'll be taken away from me one day as well. It doesn't matter that you're here now if you can't be forever!" She interrupted him, softening her voice and expressions and finally confessing what she had been hiding for years now._

_Otto's expression changed as well. What was the point of this? What was the point in arguing when Alice was hurting? He was supposed to comfort her, to truly be there for her, but all he was doing was yell at her. "No," he shook his head. "I'm not letting anyone do that to us. I promise you, Alice," with a finger on her chin, he pulled her closer slowly. "We will be together forever." He closed his eyes and leaned in._

_The gap closed._

_For a moment, everything was in it's place. The sun was now halfway visible on the horizon, setting the mood for the two. If Alice hadn't been so hurt from her parents' death, from fighting with Otto and if she hadn't been involved in the moment, she would have painted it. This moment where everything was as it should be, she was drowning in it._

_Their lips fit together perfectly like the diamonds to the crown, the feeling of each other this close sent them both flying out of this world. Warm sun was gently brushing their cheeks as they pulled away. Alice's eyes were only halfway open and she was looking at Otto, for the first time since they met she felt this unafraid. She felt like she could do anything. And all she wanted was to kiss Otto again._

_Before he even got the chance to open his eyes properly, Alice pulled him back for another kiss. This one was meant to last longer than their first one, Alice made sure of that. She pulled at Otto's hair, messing it up, anything to get him closer to herself, anything to feel his lips on her own just a bit stronger._

_Otto was more than generous at returning the favour, cupping both of Alice's cheeks in his hands, pulling her closer with the same intensity as she did to him. These were their moments. They were going to intesify them as much as they could._

_They pulled away after a few more kisses, smiling. Otto was glad that Alice had her smile back on her face. Where it was supposed to be. Rubbing his thumbs on Alice's cheeks, he whispered: "You have no idea how long I've waited to do this."_

_Alice leaned close to his face, smiling widely, tears long forgotten. "Yes, I have. I've been waiting as long as you were." She pecked his lips. "Do you not need to be somewhere?"_

_"Just here with you." He answered._

"ASDFGHJKLGHJSJDAS!!" Feliciano squealed. "I LOVE THEM SO MUCH!" He continued reading, finding comfort in their young love, yearning for one as well. He was only at the middle of the book. And he had no idea what will happen next...

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave some comments, I love reading them and they motivate me to write faster.
> 
> Also, I post updates on Tumblr so if you don't get notified for updates here, you can check me out there. I'm badwolfwrites-sometimes.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this one is a bit early because I like to spoil people. In any case I hope you enjoy it and I hope you leave some passing comments, ya girl lives on them.

_'Their whole world changed after that. Otto stopped blushing as often as he used to and Alice wasn't as carefree as she used to be, opening up her shy side to Otto. It was unusual, but it was perfect. They just had to hide it really well._

_Of course, they told Elizabeta the minute they saw her when they returned. She congratulated them and baked them a cake to celebrate. Alice also got to cry her eyes out about her parents' death on someone who knew what that was. She got better over time, thinking about her brother and how to sneak a few kisses with Otto while he was studying._

_However hard they tried to hide it, other people noticed something was different about the two of them. Luckily, The Queen didn't for now, as Otto pestered her with endless deals on getting Romano to serve at their castle. Otto has been fighting that battle for a long while, almost as long as getting to go to Venice. He just hoped to save Alice's brother before it was too late._

_Their one issue now was sharing a bed. Elizabeta made it very clear on multiple ocassions that she would not have them share a bed anymore. She was fighting a losing battle though, Otto would never let Alice go back to servants' chambers. It was something he would not allow even over his dead body. Alice stood neutral here. On one hand, she understood Elizabeta's worries. On the other, she just couldn't live without Otto's sweet goodnight kisses._

_Speaking of kisses, they would steal them from each other whenever they could, whenever they were absolutely sure no one was looking. They would often kiss in Elizabeta's presence. She wouldn't tell anyone after all. No matter how much it annoyed her.'_

Feliciano giggled. Something about Ludwig's writing gave away that he was never truly in love before. It was sweet but sad at the same time. Feliciano didn't know what he would do in a world without love. Any kind of love. He just assumed he would be horribly unhappy with everything. The irony.

"Maybe Lovi feels that way too?" He said to himself, not even realizing he said it out loud.

"I think I should apologise." He said, this time he meant to say it out loud, and got up from the bed. On the way down he spotted Romeo entering their yard. So he's home too now.

Feliciano found Lovino sitting at the table, his face covered by his arms as he clutched the phone in his hand. This was a sign to Feliciano that Lovino has been terribly hurt.

Feliciano sat by his side and Lovino offered him a small glance before returning to his wailing. Feliciano took a deep breath.

"Hey, Lovi." He said.

Lovino didn't move. "What?"

"I'm sorry about before. I shouldn't have snooped around your phone. I just want you to know that I support you, so... yeah..."

Lovino smiled, but Feliciano couldn't see it. "Thanks."

Romeo entered the house in that moment. Feliciano put his arm around Lovino's back and whispered in his ear, careful so that Romeo couldn't hear. "Tell Toni that if he ever hurts you, I will personally cremate him before his time."

Lovino laughed. Sincerely laughed. The wonderful sound reserved only for those closest to Lovino. Feliciano was taken aback for a moment, not expecting his brother to laugh at that.

"Thanks, Feli." Lovino said.

Romeo entered the kitchen in that moment. "What's all this family bonding without me?" He asked.

Feliciano laughed. "Nothing, Meo. I was telling Lovi about the story. They kissed by the way."

"Oh that's cute. I wish someone would smooch smooch me." Romeo laughed and grabbed some juice from the fridge.

"Me too." Feliciano added.

Lovino rolled his eyes, grabbing Feliciano by his back and pulling him closer. "Now, you two. We must act the good old fashioned Christian way. That means no smooching until you're married with children."

"You sound like Nonno!" Romeo squeeled.

"No, I don't." Lovino calmly said.

"Yeah, you do! Tell him Feli!"

"You did sound like Nonno just now!" Feliciano added.

"You guys need to check your hearing." Lovino remarked.

"Anyway, can I read you guys some parts from the story? It's kinda lonely to read upstairs alone." Feliciano asked.

"Okay." Romeo answered.

"I guess." Lovino added.

"Sweet! I'll go get the book."

While Feliciano was climbing up to his room to get the book, Lovino and Romeo made themselves comfortable on the sofa and a couch, leaving Feliciano with his trusty old bean bag. He returned soon after that.

"Okay so, for context, Otto's a prince, Alice is a maid from Venice and they are very in love. Elizabeta is their friend and the Queen is a bitch." Both boys snorted out at Feliciano's swearing. He only ever does that when he hates someone. "And they had their first kiss on the Rialto Bridge in last chapter. That's all you need to know for now."

"Okay. Get to the story." Lovino commented.

"Alright, here it goes." Feliciano said and read aloud.

_'One such instance happened a few days ago, when Alice forced Otto to help her and Elizabeta out while baking cookies. The two had been fairily normal for a short while, until Otto got some flour on his nose._

_"Aww! Look at him, Betty. He's so cute." Alice teased._

_"Indeed he is. You got some flour on your nose, darling." Elizabeta added._

_Otto blushed his signature red_ ,  _but as he went to wipe it away from his nose, Alice reached and did it for him. Elizabeta rolled her eyes. Otto covered his face with his hands. With hands full of flour._

_"Ugh!" Alice groaned. He might be her beautiful prince, but he's her idiot as well._

_This time Elizabeta decided to wipe it away. With a rough rag, leaving Otto's face redder than before._

_"That looks like it hurts." Alice commented, gently running her fingers up and down Otto's cheeks._

_"It does. Please don't do that, love." He said, placing his hand on Alice's, removing it from his face._

_Alice smiled. "Well, that means there's no other place for me to kiss other than your lips." Leaning in, she pecked Otto._

_Smiling, he pulled her back in for a longer kiss. As cute as it was for her, Elizabeta was starting to get sick of all this romance, shooing them both away to their room. She grinned to herself once they left. All these leftover cookies for her.'_

"I would do that too!" Romeo commented.

"Of course you would." Lovino answered back, a tone of sarcasm and amusement in his voice.

Feliciano rolled his eyes at his two brothers and continued.

_'Other than baking and annoying Elizabeta, the two also engaged in activities involving sneaking out. Mostly at night._

_Since Elizabeta prohibited any kind of cuddling at night by building a wall between them, they had to find other alternatives. This included their favorite activity: stargazing._

_Back in the days when her grandfather was alive, Alice used to sneak out to find him sitting in their garden, looking up the stars with tears in his eyes._

_"Your grandma is out there, Alice. She's waiting for all of us with her homemade cookies. The sky is her cookie tray. Look right there," he used to tell her as she got herself comfortable in his lap, pointing at the stars, "that's The Big Dipper, your grandma's favorite cookie. See how big it is, see how the stars make wonderful decorations on it. Soon, you'll bake like that too." He would say._

_Alice looked back on those days with strange fondness and sadness. Everyone but her and Romano went to see grandma and eat her cookies. What a horrible lonely feeling it was._

_"Alice? Are you alright?" Otto asked her one night when she got too quiet._

_"I'm just thinking of my family. They are all up there eating grandma's cookies while Romano and I are still here on this world, suffering." She answered, wiping away a few tears that treathened to fall down her cheeks._

_Otto brought her closer to himself, resting his arm around Alice's tiny back, kissing her neck and shoulder slowly. "I know it's hard, love, but you have got to keep your chin up. They left this world having so much hope for you and your brother. Now really isn't the time to disappoint them. I know you wish you could join them, but they would be sad knowing that you never got to see the world properly. Raise your chin far up so that they could see your smile. And so that I can kiss you properly."_

_Alice laughed, her little prince has become obsessed with her kisses, but who was she to deny him. She did as she was told, raising her chin up so that their lips could meet without obstacles. It was strange how every new kiss became sweeter and sweeter each time, almost like Otto had been stealing her caramels._

_"Have you been stealing my caramels?" Alice asked, pulling back from the kiss._

_Otto's entire face heated up, any attempts to cover it would just reveal to Alice that he had in fact been stealing them. Which was anything but good. So he just blinked his eyes and gave her a sheepish smile, hoping that she would forgive him._

_Alice made an attempt to look mad, but failed. She laughed for a bit, pinching Otto's cheeks. "They make your kisses sweeter." Otto sighed in relief, she forgave him._

_Looking back up, Alice smiled. "You know, there are so many constellations up there. Do you know any?" She asked._

_"Just a few. I was never that much of a star lover." Otto answered._

_"Well," Alice started, smirking, "that's about to change. See that one over there," she pointed to a big cluster of stars to their upper left, "that's Big Mouse."_

_Otto laughed. "I'm pretty sure Big Mouse doesn't exist."_

_Alice huffed out, visibly offended by his statement. "Of course it does! Are you calling me, the granddaughter of one of Venice's richest sailors, a liar?"_

_Otto had to cover his mouth to prevent any more giggles from escaping his mouth. "Alright, alright, you're right. Okay then, what's this one called?" He pointed to their upper right to a small group of stars._

_"Oh that's Ginny." Alice said confidently._

_Otto smiled, Lord, she was playing him, but she was too cute and confident in this. "How is that a constellation?" He asked._

_"Because I said so." Alice said nonchalantly._

_"Then," Otto smirked, "what's this cute one called?" And he pointed at her._

_Alice blushed a light pink color, poking Otto's nose before answering: "I'm not a constellation, I'm your girlfriend." And she kissed him with the biggest smile on her face.'_

"Aww, they are adorable, aren't the-" Feliciano stopped, looking around. Both of his brothers have fallen asleep while he was reading. Worse, Feliciano could not find it inside himself to wake them up.

Instead, he got a clever idea. He run up the stairs as quietly as he could, not even stumbling once on that one pesky stair from nightmares, and up to his room for the only thing no one can live without. The phone.

Feliciano grabbed it from its charging. He didn't use it much, not because he didn't want to, but because his battery would drain after a single use. He should really buy a new one. Feliciano opened Whatsapp and quickly looked for Antonio's number. His battery at 50%.

His mind went blank for a minute. He knew what he wanted to say, but he didn't know how to put it in words. Writing and erasing a few times, he settled for something fairily simple.

♡~Feli~♡: Heyy  
♡~Feli~♡: Listen I know about you and Lovi  
♡~Feli~♡: Please take good care of my brother  
♡~Feli~♡: I dont want to find him beaten in the trash can

Feliciano shut his phone off, his battery dropping to 15%, and put it back to charging, ready to return to his reading.

He walked back to the living room, kissing Lovino's, then Romeo's, foreheads and returned to his wonderful love story between Alice and Otto.

_'Their happiness continued on for two years. Otto had to deal with his mother's constant nagging on when he'll find a suitable wife to marry and bear him children. He persisted, claiming that he wasn't ready, although, in reality, he had many plans on how he'll ask Alice to marry him._

_Alice was at her happiest, she found her brother and they were living peacefully together. Romano was left in the dark about her developed relationship with Otto. It was better this way, she wouldn't want him to freak out._

_Their relationship kept on going steady, much to Elizabeta's dismay, as the two would be kissing in every single corner of the castle, preventing her from doing her job as a maid. She was glad that they were happy, but they could always tone it down a little._

_They found a new activity, which was perfect as it was a continuation of their previous one. Watching the sunrise was now their moment, cuddling close to each other in the garden and kissing the moment sun peaked out in the sky. It was beautiful. It was their own._

_"What in the world?" They heard someone asking from across the garden, breaking their moment, both looking at the source of the voice. Otto's heart broke when he saw a shining crown on said person's head. This can't be happening. They could run. They could run as fast as they can as far away as they can. But they could not move a single muscle. Their bodies were like stones, sitting unmoving in the claws of time._

_The person, now identified as The Queen herself, marched forward to them. Her fists clenched until her knuckles turned pure white, the wide steps she was taking in her walk drew Otto and Alice closer together. They braced for the impact._

_The Queen grabbed Alice by her hair and yanked her away from Otto, making her fall into the rose bush. Otto reacted instantly, rising on his feet to fight off his mother and help Alice, but his actions only earned him a slap across his face. Alice cried out, irritating the Queen further who proceeded to step on the side of her torso with her heels. Luckily for Alice, the majority of the Queen's weight wasn't on the foot that was steping on her, otherwise, Alice would have died. She had to defend herself from her son after all._

_"So this is what you have chosen? A filthy maid? I raised you to do better than this, you poor excuse of a human! This is how you repay me for birthing you!" She hit Alice with her shoe, driving the poor girl further into the thorny bushes. "This good for nothing, ugly maid!" The Queen hit Alice one more time before Otto managed to push her down, breaking free from the Queen's defensive hands._

_He jumped at her, pulling her hair out and trying desparately to give Alice some time to run away. Alice wished she could have, but the Queen grabbed at her hair with no intention of ever letting go, not to mention that she could barely move in the thorns and from the pain on her side._

_The Queen had no intention of fighting with her son either, calling for the nearby guards to take her mad son away. They did that in an instant, grabbing at Otto and pulling him away as he tried to break free and help his beloved. The tears were already welling up in his eyes, the pain of losing Alice breaking him into dust like pieces._

_The Queen finally stood on her feet, taller than ever before. "Take him inside, I will deal with this pest here." She said, pointing to Alice who was crying harder than ever before. "Be quiet, you rat! You started this all! You are going to pay for it!" She yelled, dragging poor Alice away by her hair. She tried to break free, but it was all in vain. She could only scream for her beloved as they were both being taken away from each other._

_The sun on the horizon no longer shone. Its shine had been taken away by the clouds. Dark days were upon these children. The hardest days of their lives.'_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I hope you enjoyed my little cringe fest and being an absolute hypocrite when commenting on @JuliusSneezer's story compared to writing my own, but oh well. 
> 
> I have big thanks to give to the GerIta chat on Tumblr, specifically @aph-germany and @poteredifata, for sharing some Chibitalia x HRE headcanons. You guys are life savers. Go join the GerIta chat if you haven't already and go read my friend's @JuliusSneezer's fics if you haven't already.
> 
> Okay, that's all. Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you have a wonderful decade ahead of you. I hope that you rock hard, pass your exams, get promoted at work and find the happiness you deserve!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY!! We've reached chapter 10 and, honestly, I'm so dead. Not to mention that we're not even halfway done with this story.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy this chapter. This is the last Silence in Venice bit of the story, so be ready for some feels.

_ '"Mother, you can't do that!" _

_ "Yes! I can! I'm the queen in this castle! You have to obey me!" _

_ "Why do you hate her so much?! She never did anything to you! You can't lock her up like that! Let her go, I promise we-" _

_ "Oh, don't give me those promises! We both know you're not going to keep them! You're mad for her! She stays locked!" _

_ "No!" _

_ "That's the end of it, Otto! I'm busy. And you'll never see your servant girlfriend ever again, so I suggest you start working out a royal replacement for her." _

_ "She is royal! Let her out! I'm not leaving until you do!" _

_ The Queen turned around, slapping Otto across his face. He shook a bit, but stood his ground, eyes full of hate and determination. _

_ "If you don't find yourself a suitable wife, I'm going to find her for you. And if you mention that servant girl, I'll have her head served to stray dogs and cats." The Queen turned back around and slammed her door into Otto's face. _

_ He wanted to cry. He wanted to run away. He wanted to be anywhere but here. Why couldn't she understand? Why does it matter if Alice's royal or not? Why did she need to be locked away just for kissing him? _

_ Otto leaned close to the door and with his voice broken from crying, the tears choking him, he said: "I wish I wasn't born as your son." And he stormed off to find the only person who could comfort him now, if she even wanted to see him now. _

_ He found her _   _sitting at the staff table, hands covering her face, her aged but beautiful face. Otto knew this was never a good thing. Elizabeta always smiled. No matter how grave the situation._

_ "Betty..." he called for her quietly. _

_ She nodded, but gave him no further sign of communication. He walked up to her, hugging her and sobbing into her shoulder. _

_ "They took Alice. Betty, they took everything from us." He sobbed. Elizabeta grabbed his hand that was wrapped around her body and held it firmly. Otto continued: "What are we going to do now?" _

_ Like she had been waiting for the moment, Elizabeta lifted her head and held it as far up as her body would allow it now. She looked at Otto, her eyes with an expression Otto has never seen in them before. If he had to describe them, they looked like they were ready for murder if needed. For unusual reasons, they sparked hope in Otto. _

_ "We are going to find her." She said. "We are going to find her if it costs me my entire life." _

_ Otto nodded, feeling his face go numb. He was smiling. How could he not? How could he not smile when Elizabeta just gave him more hope than he could have asked for? _

_ They devised a plan. They would look for Alice when everyone in the castle is asleep. If Alice is calling for them, this would make the search easier. And no one would be questioning their snooping around the castle. _

_ "All is clear." Otto said, finishing his inspection of the castle to see if everyone is asleep. _

_ "Good. Let's move." Elizabeta said, carefully listening if any crying could be heard. Nothing. They would have to do this the hard way, by searching every room in the castle. _

_ "Maybe we should check the prison cells first. It is most likely where she might be." Otto suggested. _

_ "Possibly. But your mother isn't stupid. She knows that's where we will look first. There is also a possibility she set up a trap for us." Elizabeta commented. _

_ "We have to try regardless." Otto said determindedly. _

_ "Try what?" A deep voice asked from behind them. Elizabeta and Otto both jumped, afraid their mission was to be stopped before it even started. They both turned around to find Rod staring at them. "You are trying to find your girlfriend, aren't you?" He asked. _

_ Otto couldn't deny it. There was something menancing in Rod's eyes, like he would ruin their mission if he didn't answer honestly. "Yes. And it's for your own sake that I ask you to keep your mouth shut." He said. _

_ Rod smirked, he had expected an answer like this. "You won't find her in prison cells. I know where she is. If you want to see her, I suggest you tone down your attitude a little." _

_ Otto's eyes widened. Rod knew where Alice was? He hated Alice. Why in the God's name does he know where she is? "My apologies. Show me the way. Please." He said, trying to mean it from the bottom of his heart. He longed for her desperately. _

_ "Good. But first, I have a favor to ask from both of you." Rod said. _

_ Otto rolled his eyes. Of course there was a catch. Elizabeta held his arm firmly. Last thing she wanted was for Otto to snap. _

_ Rod continued. "I want the throne after your father dies." Otto nodded without thinking about it much. "And I want your hand in marriage." Rod looked at Elizabeta who froze. _

_ It took a bit of nudging from Otto to get Elizabeta in a state where she could answer properly and even then she stuttered. "My...hand?" She asked. _

_ "Yes. You are not married as of yet and for me becoming the next king, I need a queen, do I not?" Rod paused, his ears slowly setting on fire. It must run in the family, talking to girls stresses them out. "Besides, you are a much better fit for a queen than any other princess I know. I do not think it should be a problem if I marry you." _

_ Elizabeta blinked, then smiled at how red Rod has become. "Will you take Prince Otto to Alice if I accept?" She asked, nodding towards Otto who became a lot more impatient now. _

_ "For you, I will do so much more." Rod said, taking Elizabeta's hands in his own. Elizabeta nodded before passing Otto to Rod. _

_ "We really need to find her. Please, show us the way and I will be your bride. Even if I'm not ready for it. Nor for ruling an Empire." She said. _

_ Rod led them the way. To the Queen's room. He opened the door without any problem. "I slipped some sleeping potion into her tea. I was expecting from you to look for her. She's in the largest closet." Otto wasted no time, running towards the closet as soon as he said that. Rod pulled out a paper to have ready. _

_ Otto opened the closet doors to find his beloved all beaten up and sleeping as peacefully as she could. He didn't have a heart to wake her up so he carried her out. Elizabeta came to his aid, closing the closet doors so the Queen doesn't notice. Rod followed the three of them out as Otto carried Alice somewhere she would be safer. For now. _

_ "What has she done to you, my love?" He said, petting her long red hair. Elizabeta hugged him from behind, glad that they were both now safe. _

_ Rod waited for them to calm down before presenting Otto the piece of paper from before. "It's a form for you to sign. That you are giving the throne to me." Otto signed it without hesitation. "You do realize that you cannot stay here after you have signed this?" Rod asked. _

_ "I wasn't planning to." Otto said, braiding Alice's hair. "It's not safe for her to stay here. I already bought her old house for us. We are going to live in Venice from now on." _

_ "Very well. I wish you the best. Wake her up, you need to leave tonight." Rod said, walking towards the door with Elizabeta. _

_ "Thank you, Rod. For showing me the way to her." Otto said. Rod smiled in response. "Betty." Otto called for her. "You were better than any mother to both of us. If I don't see you ever again, I hope you are happy. You will make a great queen someday." He smiled, wiping his tears away. _

_ Elizabeta ran towards him, embracing him for quite possibly the last time and kissing his temple. "Take care. Both of you. I'll make sure my children know about both of you and your beautiful love. Promise me, Otto, that you will love her freely for all eternity." _

_ "And beyond." Otto responded, hugging the life out Elizabeta. _

_ Once Elizabeta and Rod were both gone, Otto woke up Alice. "My love, wake up. We must leave." He shook her slightly, but stopped once he saw the tears in her eyes. _

_ "Please let me go." Alice begged in her sleep, breaking Otto's heart. _

_ "Dearest, it's me. Your prince. We have to go." He whispered softly into her ears and slowly she opened her eyes. _

_ The first thing she did was wrap her arms around Otto, holding on to him for dear life. She hadn't been locked up for long, but it felt like eternity to her. An eternity of torture. "My Prince! My beautiful Otto! I'm so glad to see you." She squeeled. _

_ Otto smiled at her reaction. Oh, how he loved her. "I am more than glad to see you as well, darling." He kissed her cheek, right below the nasty scar his mother probably made. "But we have to leave immediately. Pack only what's important for the journey. We are going to Venice." _

_ "Romano can drive." Alice interrupted the second she heard her home being mentioned. "Please tell me we can take him too." _

_ Otto hesitated. Romano hated him after all. "Of course. Betty and Rod are preparing some food for us. I will go tell your brother that we have to leave, you can do the packing for both of us." Alice nodded. Otto placed a soft kiss on her lips before running out to find Romano. _

_ When they were all packed up, the Sun was almost rising. They said their goodbyes quickly, although they wished this didn't have to happen. Alice could barely part away from Elizabeta and even Rod gave her a wholehearted hug, making her promise to watch over the former prince. Otto had told her and Romano all about how he lost his status during the carriage ride. His story even led to Romano respecting him more. Thus, they were on their way. A way for the new home, new life. _

_ ~2 years later~ _

_ Life had been treating them quite well since they left. All three of them had been working, earning money to make by. _

_ Romano took after their father's job as a boatmaker. It was a tough job and many had quit for a better opportunity as soon as they were given the chance. Romano stayed, he found the job of making boats eased his mind. He had been having more and more trouble controlling his temper after everything that has happened. _

_ Otto found a hidden passion for making things out of metal. Usually it was swords for the noblemen or guns, but he discovered that, above all that, he loved making rings and small metal jewelry. Alice enjoyed them as well. _

_ Life was possibly the hardest on Alice. She worked around the house a lot, doing laundry, dishes, making lunch for her boys and, on top of all that, volunteering at the orphanage where she took care of kids. She enjoyed that part of her life, but having any interaction with ladies her age made her stomach sick. _

_ "You live with two men and you are still not married?! Unbelievable!" _

_ "You are 18 and you don't have children?! You must be a witch!" _

_ "When I was your age, all I knew was to have children and obey my husband and you are not even married." Those and various variations were always sent her way, all pointing out little things about her, from her hair to her age to her relationship status. _

_ Otto had told her not to pay attention their words, but the truth was he was scared for her as well. It has been 5 days since she last went out. He told her to stay inside. He told her he and Romano will protect her. _

_ There was a knock on their door and something was slid through. Alice was in the kitchen at the moment and the boys were getting ready for work. She walked towards the door, noticing two letters stuck under them. She recognized the seal on one of them. The seal of The Holy Roman Empire. _

_ "Love, something came for you." She called for Otto and opened up the other letter. There was quite a sum of money inside it. Even more than usual. _

_ Otto walked down the stairs to meet his beloved, kissing her cheek before spinning her around into a proper kiss. Ever since they have moved away, this was their morning kiss. And Alice couldn't have been happier than when he did that. It was his way of telling her that he loved her, that all he was ever going to be was her's. _

_ He opened the letter to find that it was from Rod. His eyes quickly scanned the letter, noting it's formality which was anything but Rod's style. That could only mean... _

_ If the ground was shaking madly, Otto wouldn't have heard it in that moment. Dropping the letter, he collapsed on the floor. Alice was by his side instantly. "What is it, Love?" She asked. _

_ He couldn't respond, his bright blue eyes, which were once so lively, now dark and blank. He pointed at the letter, a motion to let Alice know she could read it. _

_ Alice picked up the letter, sitting in front of Otto. She read it carefully, sucking up every word it delivered. When she reached a certain part, her eyes began watering. "A war..." She whispered. _

_ Otto nodded. It was all he could do. Alice just stared at him, picturing him in a war uniform covered with his own blood and lying dead somewhere with rats nimbling at his flesh. A picture so disgusting, she could do nothing but choke down her sobs. Otto couldn't even find the strength to comfort her. _

_ "I promised Rod that I would only return home in case a war breaks out. I didn't even think it through. I didn't know my promise would come true." He finally said, his head low. _

_ Alice pulled him into a tight hug, begging him not to leave. It was all in vain. Otto had to go. He had no other choice. He could do something before he left though. _

_ Holding her close, he asked: "Alice, do you want to marry me?" A question he longed to get out of his system for so, so long. _

_ Alice nodded her head a bit too strongly, tears all but jumping from her face. If this moment wasn't as tragic as it was, those would have probably been tears of happiness. "Of course I do." She answered. _

_ "Then let us do it!" Otto pulled away to look at Alice. She was making such an ugly face, but it didn't bother Otto. This was his Alice's face. To him, no face of her's is ever ugly. "Let us get married tomorrow! On the Rialto Bridge!" _

_ Alice laughed. Of course it would be on the Rialto Bridge. Otto had fallen in love with it ever since they had their first kiss there. "Yes... Let us get married, My Prince." She whispered. It didn't ease the pain, it wouldn't ease her suffering, but it was a promise. A promise that one day when the war is over, she would see him again. _

_ Alice found an old white dress in her parents' closet. Her mother's wedding dress. It was all dusty just like the rest of the room. Neither her nor Romano ever entered their room, not even to clean it. It was too full of pain for both, but Alice had to make through it. For her own sake. Although she would rather be anywhere but there, she swallowed it up and browsed through her mother's old stuff, anything she could find for her wedding tomorrow. _

_ "I don't think I will have much time to wash the wedding dress. Will it bother you?" Alice asked Otto, who had been searching alongside her. _

_ "Probably not. It didn't bother me much when you were a maid." Otto commented, earning a giggle from Alice before she went quiet again. _

_ "Do you think..." she started. "Do you think, if you were still a prince, you wouldn't have to go to the war?" _

_ Otto closed the closet, letting out a small sarcastic hum to himself. "Knowing my mother, I would have been sent to be the first in line on the battlefield. And I don't mean that I would lead them, I would probably be sent there to die." He remarked, keeping his sarcastic tone. _

_ Alice's face fell. She knew Otto was joking, yet she couldn't help but wonder. The image from before was still rooted deep inside her mind. _

_ Otto noticed her reaction, walking up to her with a smile on his face. "If that was the case, I would have died, but it is not now. Now I have to come home to you. If anyone is going to save me out there, it is always going to be you." He placed a soft kiss on her lips, brushing her rose colored cheeks with his thumb. If he could, he would never pull away from those sweet moments they have. They wouldn't last for much longer. _

_ They were getting married at the sunset. Otto had begged the local priest to let their ceremony be held on the Rialto Bridge to which the same priest reluctantly agreed after hearing of Otto's fate. The same priest and Otto, as well as a few other people watching, stood at the highest point of the bridge, waiting for Alice. _

_ Before the sun started setting, Alice showed up, escorted by Romano wearing a rag around his face. The dust from Alice's dress caused quite a few sneezing fits from Romano. Even with how rushed she looked, Otto had to point out that she looked rather marvelous. _

_ The ceremony was kept fairly short. The priest had blessed Otto for his journey and to live through the war, blessed Alice to keep her head and heart strong through these painful times and, finally, blessed Romano for the tenth time he sneezed. _

_ But the most important part happened at the perfect moment. The very same moment it happened the first time. At the time when they shared their first kiss, they sealed their wedding deal. Otto had whispered a small 'I love you' to Alice right before she jumped at him, dust from her dress flying around, smashing her lips against Otto's. Otto smiled into the kiss, giving a soft hum of content. The crowd around them cheered, but the two didn't seem to hear. _

_ They had no time to hold a party, Otto had to leave very early in the morning, so when they got home and got rid of their clothes, they just laid in their shared bed. It was their first night together as a married couple and they decided to waste it in cuddling. Alice spent quite an amount of time crying for Otto and he could only offer her kisses and hugs as a comfort. He would do anything to not go out there tomorrow morning. _

_ "Don't say goodbye to me tomorrow." He whispered into Alice's ear. "I don't want that word between us as I fight that war." _

_ Alice nodded, she would have preferred not to say it as well. "Will you hug Betty for me if you see her?" She asked. _

_ "Of course, My Love." Otto planted yet another kiss on Alice's lips. "Now, let us go to sleep. Remember, we-" _

_ "-can always meet in the land of dreams." She interrupted. "You have said it so many times tonight." _

_ He smiled. "Because it is true. And I will think of you day and night until I can properly see you again. I will think of you when the sun rises and the smell of flour stuck in your hair as you wake me up." _

_ Alice giggled. "I will think of you when the sun is at its highest and the way you talk about your day as we eat lunch at the table." He continued. _

_ "I will think of you when as the sun goes down and of our first kiss on the Rialto Bridge. I will think of you when the stars are out and of us close together as we watch the stars. And of your sad face when you realize you missed a falling star. I will think of the way you love me. And how much I love you too." Alice smiled a sad smile once Otto finished, knowing that she won't be hearing these words being said from these lips for a very long time. _

_ "I will always love you. Remember that wherever you are. I will be waiting here for you. I will wait no matter how long this war lasts. And I will welcome you home with hugs and kisses and fresh bread and sweets." She said, brushing her fingers down Otto's chest for one last time. _

_ "I know you will. I already cannot wait to eat them all again." He smiled. _

_ "Should I make you some for the trip?" _

_ "No. Stay with me here for as long as we can. I want to spend every last moment here with you." _

_ Otto kissed her for one last time before she started drifting away into the dreamworld. The last thing she heard before she was gone to the world was a soft 'Goodnight.' Not long after her, Otto had fallen asleep as well. One last peace between them. _

_ The next morning came way faster than both had wanted it. Alice couldn't bear this. One minute she had everything she could have asked for and the next one, her everything is being taken away. Otto felt the same, not wishing to even get up from their bed. He had to though, the carriage was already waiting outside for him and the driver was getting super pissed off. He was like Romano on a bad day. _

_ Otto finally got the courage to dress amd come down with Alice's help. Together they loaded Otto's stuff into the carriage. It wasn't a very large bag, just some extra clothing he might need. He preferred to leave more stuff behind for Alice. He knew she wouldn't forget him, but if she ever missed him, she could always look through his belongings. _

_ The newlyweds exchanged one last hug, neither saying a word, dreading the heaviness of the air around them. Finally, as Otto was about to board the carriage, Alice pulled him back for a kiss. It was the most painful kiss Otto had ever received. _

_ He pulled away first, whispering: "I love you, Alice." _

_ She wiped away her tears. "I love you too, Otto." _

_ And off he was, to the dreaded war. It was the early summer of 1618, a perfect time for a new life. And new life was what Alice would get starting now.' _

Feliciano closed the book. A sudden feeling of emptiness washing over him. What will he do now? What was his life like before reading this book? How strange it was, books have the power to change lives and this one certainly changed his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, I cried writing this. 
> 
> Next chapter will probably also be up a bit later because exams are a pain, but at least the next one introduces a very important character ;))


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... remember when I said this chapter introduces only one important character? Well, since it's Valentine's Day, expect a little surprise ;))

In his thinking about what he should do with his life now, Feliciano managed to fall asleep. If only for a short while.

"Toni is coming over! Make yourself presentable!" Lovino burst into his room, screaming and attempting to put some fancy leather pants on himself.

Feliciano turned around to face his brother. He loves his brother so much he would die for him, but if he wakes him up one more time... Feliciano wasn't actually sure what he would do. Probably something mean and then apologise the second the deed is done.

He closed his eyes again, adjusting in his comfortable bed. "He's your boyfriend. If anyone should look presentable, it's you."

"Don't embarrass me, Feli." Finally, those pants found themselves on Lovino's legs. Damn, he needed to lose some weight. And try not to sit down. "Get ready and help me set the table. Midget is off somewhere." After saying that, Lovino made his way downstairs.

Feliciano reluctantly sat on his bed, hugging his pillow. He giggled at his brother's gay panic. No matter how much of a flirt they all were, finding themselves in a situation where romance was required left all three of them in a state of helplessness.

Then it dawned on Feliciano. He was the only one not in a relationship out of the three of them. Well, Romeo wasn't officially in a relationship, but the way he talked about that girl the other day makes it seem like being single wouldn't last a while for him. It left Feliciano with a bittersweet feeling in his stomach. The ones who believe in love the most are always the last ones to experience it.

He should really get up before he gets drowned in the feelings of forever alone. He could stay in pajamas though, it's only their Toni.

As he was leaving his room, in the corner of his eye he noticed his unfinished painting still standing. It was calling for him, but he wasn't ready for it yet.

"Oh, please don't tell me you're wearing that to dinner." Lovino commented as soon as he saw him. Feliciano was dressed in his red pajama pants with cats all over them and an old blue T-shirt he got from Grandpa. In other words, he was dressed in his favourite outfit.

"It's comfortable." Feliciano responded, earning an eyeroll from his brother. "Don't tell me you're afraid he might actually come to my room tonight and not yours cuz I'm more inviting."

Lovino threw a rag at his brother.

Feliciano only laughed. "Those pants do look hard to pull off."

Lovino gasped at the comment, but before he could hit Feliciano again, the door swung open. "Lovi~" Came a sweet, exotic voice which got Lovino all red in a matter of seconds.

Feliciano smirked, but Lovino didn't notice. In fact, Lovino seemed unable to move. That means Feliciano has to get Antonio.

"Hi, Toni! Lovi is having a meltdown in the kitchen and he needs all of your kisses." Feliciano popped a greeting to his friend, before he turned serious. "Did you get my texts?"

Antonio nodded, patting Feliciano's head and messing his hair up. "I'll take good care of him." He smiled.

Feliciano's mood returned back to normal after hearing that, continuing with his jokes. "I hope you don't mind me being in pajamas. Please don't try to sleep with me accidentally."

Antonio blushed, the soft shade of pink matching his green eyes and dark complexion. Feliciano could see the reason why his brother fell for him. He was beautiful, kind, loving and had a really nice butt. "Don't worry about it, Feli. My heart is only Lovino's." Antonio said.

"Good. Make sure it stays that way. And use protection." Feliciano laughed before walking back to the kitchen.

"Mamita told me the same thing!" Antonio giggled, walking over to Lovino who was still experiencing some troubles with moving and talking, and gave him a big kiss on his cheeks. "How are you, amo?"

Feliciano avoided directly staring at them, but he could pick out Lovino's smiles and nuzzles from the glasses he was holding in hands. As much as he was glad that his brother was feeling happy and safe to even be doing this in front of him, Feliciano still worried.

"I finished the book, you know." He said, setting the glasses at the table. "I really liked it, too."

Antonio and Lovino tore their gazes away from each other for a couple of seconds, noticing that everything was now set. "Book?  _Silence in Venice_?" Antonio asked, sitting down next to Lovino.

"Yeah. I feel really bad for Alice. She got too much abuse from everyone and she didn't deserve it." Feliciano ranted.

Antonio shrugged, running circles on Lovino's shoulder. "I only know what Andy told me so I can't really say anything about that. He has a theory that she's pregnant or something by the end of the book. And the author gave some hints about a sequal so..."

"Oh, you're talking about that German book." Came from Lovino, who finally connected the dots. "Should I leave the table?"

Antonio made a weird face, like he had done something wrong. Feliciano could feel his blood beginning to boil, wanting to evaporate from his body. He had to keep it cool, a dinner is never a place for war. "No, it's fine. We're done anyway." He said.

"You know I hate them and you know why I hate them, so don't bring them up in front of me." Lovino huffed out angrily.

Feliciano didn't respond, he just quietly ate his dinner. Right now, all he wanted was his room and his peace. And not being a third wheel to his brother.

He finally slipped away from the table, under a bathroom excuse, when Antonio was too busy courting Lovino and Lovino was too busy flirting with him to notice. God, it felt so good to be free from their loveydoveyness. True, he loved romance, he could literally drown in romance, but sometimes he needed to be away from it to fully enjoy it again.

He sat in front of his painting, thinking back of his mistake. There were still chances to fix it, but did he really have to do it now? After the suffering he just went through with the book?

Then it dawned on him. He could fix the painting AND his broken heart. All he had to do was paint what broke him over the nasty brown colour. Hell, even that ugly brown looked so beautiful to him now that he had an idea.

Feliciano raced out of his room, squealing and jumping around, bursting with inspiration and ideas. He had to share them with someone. The one time he could really say that he was a genious was now.

Antonio and Lovino looked at him as he jumped all across the stairs. If Lovino was forced to admit it, he had never seen Feliciano this happy in his life.

He run up to them, hugging them both at the same time much to their confusion, mumbling something about how he got it. Feliciano then proceeded to kiss both of their foreheads, just as Romeo was entering the house.

To Romeo's distress and confusion, Feliciano jumped for him next, hugging him and kissing him the same way he did Antonio and Lovino. The oldest and the youngest brothers exchanged looks of pure confusion. Something weird got into Feliciano lately.

Then, like nothing happened, Feliciano stormed back to his room, leaving his brothers and Antonio in a what-the-hell-just-happened-here atmosphere.

Feliciano returned back to his chair, he already wasted enough of his inspiration time to hug and kiss his brothers, if he wasted more, he would lose the idea.

It took Feliciano several days to finish his work of art. That is several days of not eating or sleeping. He barely even drank anything and most of the time it was paint water. He couldn't even distinguish it from actual water because everything started to taste metalic like the paint. But it was a small price to pay for being an artist.

Feliciano was proud of his work. The ugly brown stripe was now replaced by a magnificant bridge, The Rialto bridge. On top of the bridge Feliciano added two people holding hands and pressing their foreheads together. One was a beautiful girl with red hair tied in two side braids which fell neatly down her green dress. The other was a boy dressed in black with slicked blond hair and a lovestruck expression on his face. Just as Feliciano imagined them.

He snapped a picture of his painting, posting it on his Instagram and Tumblr, before leaving his room for the first time in a while.

"He's alive!" Was the first thing welcoming Feliciano as he entered the kitchen. "We really thought you were dead." The same person, Romeo, commented.

Romeo was making lunch that day, quite an unusual activity for him, and Lovino was nowhere to be found. "He's at Toni's house if you need him." Romeo said, reading Feliciano like an open book. "And Nonno called, he'll be here by tomorrow night."

Well, that was exciting. "Really?" Feliciano asked, earning a nod from his brother. "Where do you think he's been travelling this time?"

"Probably anywhere but Greece." Romeo joked.

"That's rude to Uncle Heracles!" Feliciano giggled.

"Why do we even call him uncle? He's basically the same age as Lovi."

"No idea."

The conversation died. Romeo was too busy cooking his lunch to continue poking fun at their odd family relationship. Uncle Heracles was actually only half of an uncle to them, their grandmother's son after she divorced their grandfather. Even with the two remaining close friends, Feliciano and his brothers barely see their uncle.

But it wasn't the time to think about family drama.

Feliciano placed his arms on his brother's shoulders, an old habit which hadn't died even after Romeo outgrew him. "What are you making?"

"Eggs." Romeo answered.

"Yeah, I can see that." Feliciano giggled. "Wait, that's all you're gonna eat?"

"That's four eggs, Feli."

"That's not a lunch!" Feliciano was offended. "Move over, I'm gonna make you something proper."

Romeo stopped and stared at Feliciano. "I wanna eat eggs. And I wanna make my own lunch. So go away."

Before Feliciano could protest, Romeo wiggled his eyebrows in the direction of the door, clicking with his tongue. No point in fighting, Feliciano, just be a good dog and walk away.

He returned to his room, wondering if he should paint more or leave it to settle for a few days. Or he could check how his new painting was doing on the social media.

Feliciano opened his Instagram first, saw that he got a few likes and no comments so far. Tumblr was even worse. Well, he didn't expect much in the first place.

Then he got a WhatsApp notification. From an unknown number.

'Hey Feli! <3'  
'I haven't heard from you in a while, how are you?'  
'This is Elizabeta btw. From middle school.'

Oh. It was Lizzie.

Truth to be told, Feliciano had the unfortunate luck to get all the numbers from his middle school deleted in a broken phone accident. Good thing he kept his old number.

He added her back to his contacts and responded.

♡~Feli~♡: Heyy Lizzie  
♡~Feli~♡: True long time no hear  
♡~Feli~♡: Im fine how are you hows life in Hungary

Feliciano decided to browse around his phone, waiting for a reply.

Lizzie: Great actually XD  
Lizzie: I'm not really living in Hungary anymore  
Lizzie: I got married

♡~Feli~♡: Congratulations!!  
♡~Feli~♡: Where do you live now

Lizzie: Germany  
Lizzie: Actually that's what I texted you for  
Lizzie: See I saw your latest art on Facebook  
Lizzie: From the book Silence in Venice  
Lizzie: And I showed it to my husband's cousin and he's really into it so I wanted to ask if you'd be okay if I gave him your number  
Lizzie: He wants to gush about his emotions to you

Feliciano blinked. There was too much going on right now. First of all, he posted his art on Facebook? Unlikely, but then again he is prone to forgetting about things when it comes to art. That's how he failed his Art History. Stupid Rembrant.

Second of all, he was not comfortable with that at all. Elizabeta having his number was alright and all, even if they haven't seen each other since forever, but a complete stranger... He'll have to pass on that.

♡~Feli~♡: Actually...  
♡~Feli~♡: Id rather you dont do that  
♡~Feli~♡: Im not really comfortable with that  
♡~Feli~♡: He can message me on Insta tho  
♡~Feli~♡: Or Tumblr

A couple of minutes passed.

Lizzie: Yeah no problem  
Lizzie: He doesn't have either but I'm gonna make him some  
Lizzie: What's your Tumblr username

♡~Feli~♡: Artisloveandlife

Lizzie: That sounds just like you :D

Feliciano wasn't sure if he was supposed to wait for something or go and do his own thing. He wasn't sure if he even had a thing to do in the first place.

Half an hour passed. Feliciano spent them on Youtube, watching random cat videos. They were cute, but he wasn't really into them at the moment. Then his phone buzzed, two notifications from Tumblr.

'lutzie71 has followed you.'

'fryingpansandyaoi has followed you.'

Moments later, he was hit with another message on WhatsApp.

Lizzie: Heh took me a while  
Lizzie: I'm fryingpansandyaoi and he's lutzie71  
Lizzie: You might want to message him first he's really shy

_How cute!_ Feliciano thought. Shy men were the best kind of men in his opinion.

♡~Feli~♡: Okay lol  
♡~Feli~♡: You re still into yaoi omg  
♡~Feli~♡: Some things never change hahah

Lizzie: Yeah...

♡~Feli~♡: You re not trying to set me up with him are you now

Lizzie: No I've grown out of that phase  
Lizzie: Just talk to him he's been staring at his phone without blinking for a few minutes now  
Lizzie: It's freaking me out

♡~Feli~♡: Aww thats adorable  
♡~Feli~♡: I will text him now

And true to his word, Feliciano opened his Tumblr, followed back his new mutuals, and typed out his message to a potential new friend.

Artisloveandlife: Hello!  
Artisloveandlife: How are you? I'm Elizabeta's friend! Nice to meet you!

3 minutes passed before Feliciano got a response.

Lutzie71: Hello...  
Lutzie71: I really appreciate your artwork for my book.  
Lutzie71: I am Ludwig by the way.

It was at that moment that Feliciano knew... the tables are about to be flipped.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment if you liked it. They mean a lot to me and I love reading them.


	12. Chapter 12

Feliciano might be overreacting a bit over this.

He was currently sitting on his phone, waiting for Elizabeta to respond to his slightly angry messages over not even giving him a hint of what to expect. Poor Ludwig was left on read.

Feliciano was excited, he truly was, but for some reason he was scared. Ludwig Beilschmidt was extremely close to being his new favorite author and then he messages him and Feliciano is freaking out because he does not know what in the world is he supposed to do. Responding is a good way to start, but what should he say in order to not sound like a weirdo? Now he knew how fanfiction readers felt like commenting on their favorite stories.

Maybe he should rule out 'have my babies' as a possible answer...

While he was having his meltdown, he failed to notice that it was suddenly night and Elizabeta responded.

_Lizzie_ : Well...  
 _Lizzie_ : In my defense I did tell him not to say that   
 _Lizzie_ : Keep his identity hidden

Okay, Feliciano was furious now.

_♡_ _~Feli~_ _♡_ : You could ve at least warned me  
 _♡_ _~Feli~_ _♡_ : Like idk hes not what he seems feli  
 _♡_ _~Feli~_ _♡_ : Or something like that

_Lizzie_ : Sorry  *sad face emoji*  
 _Lizzie_ : Lud has no experience talking to people online  
 _Lizzie_ : So I didn't want to burden him with being too careful about being a writer  
 _Lizzie_ : But he really wanted to talk to you so please don't feel weird around him  
 _Lizzie_ : Pretty please Feli ♡

And now he felt bad. He was acting like an asshole to his friend who was just trying to help her own friend. And Ludwig was still waiting for a response.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Hi Ludwig!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Tbh when Lizzie said she had someone who wants to talk to me I was kinda expecting a fellow fan  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Talking to the author themself is a big deal so I'm sorry if I'm awkward.

Feliciano didn't even get a chance to rest his phone.

_Lutzie71_ : You are not awkward.  
 _Lutzie71_ : But I have a question.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Who is Lizzie?

_Artisloveandlife_ : Elizabeta.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Does she go by a different name now?

_Lutzie71_ : I am sorry.  
 _Lutzie71_ : I am just used to calling her Betty.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Don't apologize  *big smile emoji*  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : She used to go by a lot of nicknames in middle school so...  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Did you know that her real name isn't even Elizabeta?  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : It's something like Erzebet??

_Lutzie71_ : Erszebet.  
 _Lutzie71_ : I asked her.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Elegant, are we?  *laughing and crying emoji*  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : But you call her Betty like Otto and Alice. That's so cute!

_Lutzie71_ : Yeah...  
 _Lutzie71_ : The character Elizabeta was made after her.  
 _Lutzie71_ : She was pestering me too much about it.

Well, that's kind of cute.

_Artisloveandlife_ : That sounds like Lizzie.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : But why did you want to talk to me?  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : I don't think authors normally do that.

_Lutzie71_ : Well, you painted that beautiful piece of art and I have been looking for someone to do a cover for it and the second book.  
 _Lutzie71_ : So I thought I might ask.

Feliciano almost flipped another table at that. There is going to be another book?! For real?! He was only stopped from flipping things by Lovino calling him angrily. Right as he was texting Ludwig at that.

_Lutzie71_ : I apologize for asking such a private question, but you never told me your name?

Well, of course Feliciano would forget something like that.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Feliciano.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Sorry, I forgot.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Call me Feli.

Feliciano made his way downstairs as quick as he possibly could, just to see what his brother wanted from him now. He noticed two brown heads instead of one.

"Hey Toni!" Feliciano said.

Both Lovino and Antonio turned to face Feliciano. Lovino's face was as if he just ate a whole lemon and Antonio looked slightly worried. "We need to talk." Lovino said simply.

Feliciano nodded, feeling his phone vibrate, but he couldn't respond right now. That would piss Lovino off. "What is it?" He asked.

Lovino sat on the couch, motioning for Antonio and Feliciano to sit as well. Feliciano chose to sit on the stairs, a gut feeling telling him something wasn't right. He wondered if Antonio and Lovino had a fight, but when Antonio sat down next to Lovino, wrapping him up like a blanket, he relaxed.

"You know how Nonno is coming home tomorrow?" Lovino asked, not looking at Feliciano.

"Yeah." Feliciano answered. "Will you two tell him?"

"That's why we're talking to you." Antonio responded, interrupting Lovino as he was about to open his mouth and respond. "Feli, I don't know if you know this, but coming out is a big thing. And it only becomes harder when your heart is already devoted to someone." He squeezed Lovino closer to himself. "If something goes wrong, it's not just you who gets hurt. They get hurt as well. And it takes a good amount of time to properly come out to someone, so-"

"Keep your mouth shut, Feli." Lovino interrupted.

Feliciano nodded, he wasn't planning on saying anything anyway, but now he was more scared than ever of what his brother would do if he even let a tiny bit of it slip. "Can I go back to my room now?" He asked.

"Do the dishes first." Lovino said with a smirk.

Feliciano groaned. "But I did them yesterday!"

"Well, Midget isn't here right now."

"You can do them once in a lifetime!"

"Can't. I have a guest and important business to attend to."

"Making out isn't a business!"

"Neither is art."

Feliciano gave up before it escalated into a fight. He checked Ludwig's message before turning up music to do his work.

_Lutzie71_ : Feliciano has a nice tone to it. It means 'happy one', doesn't it?

It was nice to see that Feliciano wasn't the only person in the world obsessed with name meanings. At least now, he isn't alone.

Once Feliciano was finished with the dishes, he sneaked up to his room before Lovino could give him another task to accomplish. He really just wanted to text with Ludwig right now, a thought of a great friendship growing in his mind. He sat on his bed and responded.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Yess!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : You know your onomastics, I like you already!!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : I look forward to working with you on the book!

_Lutzie71_ : So you accept my offer?

Feliciano giggled. Cute.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Yup!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : On a condition that I get to read it before anyone else.

_Lutzie71_ : You would have to fight my brother for that.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Ahh I don't like to fight...  *sad face emoji*  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : I'll read it after him.

_Lutzie71_ : I just asked him and he said you can read it first if you paint him a portrait of himself.  
 _Lutzie71_ : In a Prussian uniform from 1770s.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Deal!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : I have no idea what he looks like but I'll do my best!

_Lutzie71_ : He looks like an idiot.  
 _Lutzie71_ : And he's passed out on the floor now.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Is he alright?

_Lutzie71_ : Yes, he just had too much alcohol.  
 _Lutzie71_ : He looks rather comfortable next to our dogs.

Feliciano gasped.

_Artisloveandlife_ : You have dogs?!?!?!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Can I see them? Can I please see them? I love dogs!

_Lutzie71_ : I suppose you can.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Let me just figure out how to send you a picture.

Feliciano waited, smiling to himself. It's been a while since he talked to someone online, he almost forgot how exciting it would feel. Moments later, he got his response.

It was a lovely picture of three dogs perfectly nested with a white haired man. They were all ranging in size and colour. Feliciano didn't know much about dog species so he chose not to assume what they were. Them being super cute was what won Feliciano over, as he was on the floor with his legs high in the air, smiling and making strange noises whales would probably understand.

_Artisloveandlife_ : THEY ARE SO CUTE!!!!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : THEY MUST BE SO FLUFFY!! LUCKY!!  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Also is that your brother?

_Lutzie71_ : Unfortunately yes.  
 _Lutzie71_ : They aren't really fluffy, but they are rather cuddly.

_Artisloveandlife_ : If this was anime world youre brother would be dead.  *dead face emoji*  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : SO CUTEE!!

_Lutzie71_ : Oddly enough, you are not the first person who made that comment.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Also, I apologize but I am not sorry for this.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Your*

_Artisloveandlife_ : Ah, thanks.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : English isn't my first language so I make mistakes.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Whats the difference anyway??

_Lutzie71_ : Your is for showing possession. For example your brother, your sister, your car, ect. You're is a short form for you are like I'm is for I am. Examples are you're driving, you're cooking and so on.

_Artisloveandlife_ : You explained that like a teacher.  *smile emoji*

_Lutzie71_ : A lot of people get it wrong. It is a common mistake.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Is that why you type them out every time instead of shortening them?

_Lutzie71_ : You could say that.  
 _Lutzie71_ : In any case I must go, my brother would just continue sleeping on the floor if someone wasn't there to carry him.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Good night, Feliciano.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Lol  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Good night Ludwig.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Remind me to send you a picture of my lovely babies  *yellow heart emoji*

_Lutzie71_ : I will.

For the first time that night, Feliciano looked at the time. It was almost 2 a.m. He had been so engrossed into his conversation with Ludwig, he hadn't even thought about how late it was. There was no way he could even fall asleep after all that.

Before he knew it, morning came and he hadn't slept for a second. Instead, he spent the entire night rereading his texts with Ludwig, still in utter disbelief that he's talking to an actual author he admires. Most of his favourite authors have been dead for the past 800 years. Serves you right for liking Dante so much, Feliciano.

He decided to make something to eat and relax nicely. Their grandfather was coming home today so that means there's tons of cleaning to do and no time to rest. He turned on the TV and decided to watch some cartoons.

"Feli." A voice called for him.

"Feli, it's noon. Wake up." Someone was calling.

"Wakey, wakey, little Feli~" A melodic voice was calling, demanding that he wakes up. Strange, he wasn't even-

Feliciano opened his eyes to messy brown hair and a smile. He fell asleep? When? It didn't matter right now anyway, since he was awake.

"Morning, Toni." He smiled.

Antonio messed up Feliciano's hair. "Good afternoon, Feli."

"Those jokes suck. Stop it." Feliciano joked, adjusting himself in a different position on the couch.

"Never!" Antonio sat next to him. "Lovi is asleep too and Meo escaped somewhere again. I guess it's up to us to fix this place for your grandpa."

Feliciano looked around. Sure, there was dust everywhere and probably a good amount of spiderwebs, but overall, the place was actually less of a mess than it could be. "It's fine like this. He'll only stay for a few days so it doesn't matter."

Antonio pinched his cheek. "It does matter. He's your grandpa. Now, are you going to help me clean or are you going to wake Lovi up, soldier?"

Feliciano didn't even give it a thought. "I'll help you clean!"

"Good!" Antonio smiled.

"But first, let me check my phone." Feliciano said, already reaching for it on the table in front of them. He had a notification from Tumblr.

_Lutzie71_ : Good morning, Feliciano.

This was sent at 9 a.m. Feliciano admired Ludwig's skill to wake up so early after talking to each other till so late.

_Artisloveandlife_ : And a late good morning to you too  *smile emoji*

Ludwig's response was almost instant.

_Lutzie71_ : You are just like my brother, only you actually woke up.

Feliciano giggled, catching Antonio's attention. "Who is it? Girlfriend? Boyfriend?" He asked, a huge smirk stuck on his face.

Feliciano's ears grew red, his smile shaking. "Just a friend." He answered.

"That's how it always starts." Antonio commented before getting up to make himself some coffee.

_Lutzie71_ : You told me to remind you to show me your babies.  
 _Lutzie71_ : I am very curious to see if they are comparable to my dogs. Which I doubt.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Meanie  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Let me find them first.

Feliciano got up and searched around the house for his "babies." They were actually two cats, a grey one and a white with brown spots one. Both were Feliciano's. He got them for his 20th birthday after 20 years of begging. He found them asleep in the 1st floor bathroom and, without much thinking, snapped a picture which he sent to Ludwig.

_Lutzie71_ : I must admit their adorableness.  
 _Lutzie71_ : However, they aren't nowhere near my dogs.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Big meanie.  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Pookie and Gino are worthy of being the greatest cats in the universe  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Even witches' cats are afraid of their power.

_Lutzie71_ : They still can't compare to my dogs and their wisdom.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Im beginning to suspect that your dogs wrote your book for you

_Lutzie71_ : I will not reveal such secrets.

_Artisloveandlife_ : So they did  *smiling and crying face emoji*

_Lutzie71_ : Okay, jokes aside. We know Aster, Berlitz and Blackie are superior, but  
 _Lutzie71_ : I am curious about what you thought on the book.  
 _Lutzie71_ : My brother complained that it was too cringy.

_Artisloveandlife_ : We never agreed to that tho  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : It was a bit cringy at some parts like those romance bits  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Even tho I fangirled like there was no tomorrow because they were meant to be with each other  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : But overall it was a really good book  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : You were a bit immature in that field so it made me laugh a lot

_Lutzie71_ : I guess it helped in getting my point across.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Point?

_Lutzie71_ : The innocent suffer in wars.  
 _Lutzie71_ : I wanted to write about the soldiers who have their families and lives which they had to leave behind in order to die for a cause irrelevant to them.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Because what we remember from them is always just a number. Not their lives or their deeds, just whether or not they make the number of deaths increase.   
 _Lutzie71_ : I wanted to point out that they are so much more than than. More than a number.

_Artisloveandlife_ : That  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : That is really meaningful  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : But why did you choose The Thirty Years War?  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Wouldnt it be easier to just use World War 1 or 2??

_Lutzie71_ : Because, unlike them, The 30 Years War was a long time ago and people have mostly forgotten about it.  
 _Lutzie71_ : That's not the case for the World Wars.  
 _Lutzie71_ : They are still far too fresh in the world's memories.  
 _Lutzie71_ : There's also the fact that I am German which is why I felt wrong writing about the wars my country mostly started. The 30 Years War was a result of an unstable situation in Europe.   
 _Lutzie71_ : You could say that I was afraid of writing about the World Wars.

_Artisloveandlife_ : This converstation took a turn for something really depressive

_Lutzie71_ : Conversation*

_Artisloveandlife_ : Sorry  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : My fingers slipped  *smile emoji*

"Feli! Are you helping me or not?" Antonio called for Feliciano, startling him a bit. He was still in the bathroom, on the floor and petting his two kitties as he read Ludwig's messages.

_Artisloveandlife_ : Im gonna have to go now  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : My grandpa is coming home after a long trip and we have to clean the whole house  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Which is a lot  
 _Artisloveandlife_ : Ttyl Ludwig  *winky face emoji*

_Lutzie71_ : I have no idea what that means.  
 _Lutzie71_ : Good bye, Feliciano.

Feliciano raced to meet with Antonio for a spring clean up, not even noticing new messages from Ludwig. He was reluctant to clean the house now, eager to return to texting his friend, but he had to put some of his excitement into a good use. His Nonno was coming home and for the first time in a while, Feliciano had made a new friend. One that he intended to keep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment if you like it, or even if you don't just tell me what you don't like. 
> 
> Also, I'm writing out the emojis because I want everyone to be able to picture them and not just end up with a rectangle. Let me know if you like it like that or do you prefer seeing the actual emojis.


End file.
